Inside the door, I quickly walk up to the member's desk and get tickets for the recent exhibit: The Power of Gold - Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana. Bob is in the gift shop and after meeting up, into the exhibit we go.
The first part of the exhibit focuses on "goldweights." According to the placard on the wall, "By the 17th century, Akan and Asante goldsmiths cast goldweights in the forms of humans, animals, plants, and various man-made objects. Like some of the earlier geometric weights, representational goldweights were connected to proverbs and maxims. For older figurative weights, many of their original associations have been forgotten. Others have new meanings, as familiar proverbs differed among generations and geographic locations. Adding to this complex visual communication, some proverbs carry multiple meanings. In this display, figurative (representational) goldweights are grouped into several themes and time periods. Broadly speaking, the human figure and animal subjects appear in goldweights starting in the 17th century. Human figures range in age and activity. Animals are equally diverse. mammals, birds, fish, and insects are represented individually and in interactive groups."
