The rich gold resources of Ghana have been the economic foundation upon which Akan kingdoms were first founded as early as the 14th and 15th centuries. Gold of the Akan forests was sent north over a vast trade network that carried commodities, as well as people and ideas, across the Sahara and into the Middle East and Europe The Akan had a global presence long before the arrival of Europeans in West Africa.
In this talk, University of Michigan Professor of Art History Dr. Raymond Silverman will explore early evidence for these global connections, including the introduction of the technologies used to make the stunning gold objects exhibited in The Power of Gold: Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana.
The exhibition includes over 200 items of gleaming gold regalia, colorful and intricately woven silk kente cloth, ceremonial furniture, state swords, linguist staffs, and other significant objects related to Asante royals from the 19th through the 21st centuries. The Power of Gold reveals the splendor of Asante regalia through objects from private and public collections, including works in the DMA's collection.
This talk is part of Late Nights at the Dallas Museum of Art.
Image: Sword ornament in the form of a lion, Ghana, Nsuta, Asante peoples, mid-20th century, cast gold and felt, Dallas Museum of Art, The Eugene and Margaret McDermott Art Fund, Inc., 2010.2.McD