Fertility doll "akua ba" ·  Ghana, Ashanti · ID: 3033241

Description

wood, blackish brown patina, typical form, white string of glass beads, rep. (left arm), min. dam., minor missing parts (left breast), slight traces of abrasion;
these dolls are supposed to encourage fertility. Women used to carry them on their back before and during pregnancy and used to treat them as real children. They gained their magical power from a deity via the diviner’s blessing. After childbirth, they were either dedicated to the deity, placed on a shrine, or they were given to a child for playing.

The object Fertility doll “akua ba” with the object ID 3033241 was last part of the auction 70th tribal art auction at September 8, 2012 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 128 achieved a sales price of EUR 600.

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