Collector set of two Akan (Ashanti or Asante) gold weights
Small star design 12x12mm, Four bars design 12x15mm
Ghana, formerly called the Gold Coast traded gold to other West African kingdoms, and like in California's early days, gold dust was also used in everyday commerce.
Carefully calibrated brass weights were essential for this trade and highly valued.
Those in the geometric style, like those offered here date from the 1400 to 1720.
Around 1600 AD weights in the shape of people, animals, buildings, plants and adinkara symbols started to appear.
They came in sets and were often given to men when they married, ensuring they would be able to successfully engage in trade.
Many stories, proverbs, riddles, lessons, and codes of conduct, surround the weights, especially on the subject of equality and justice, which served to reinforce the values of the people.
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