Goldweight [Half Man 19th-20th century

This small bronze sculpture, "Goldweight [Half Man]", was made by an Akan artist and comes from the region of modern-day Ghana. As the name suggests, these objects were used to measure gold dust, the currency of the time. This particular weight depicts an animal-human hybrid. The visual codes are complex, the hybrid form suggests a mediation between the animal and human worlds, a reference to the ways in which proverbs and storytelling were central to Akan culture. The weights themselves were often part of elaborate systems of display. As historians, we are interested in the ways in which institutions such as trade and exchange shape artistic production. Objects like this one offer a window into the economic and cultural life of the Akan people, before and during the period of European colonization. Understanding this requires archival research, linguistic study, and, of course, close attention to the objects themselves.