Asante: Sacred Gold – The Wallace Collection

The Wallace Collection is famed for its Old Master paintings, French
decorative arts, and arms and armour. Less well known, however, is a
small group of gold regalia that is of profound spiritual, cultural and
artistic importance to Asante, in present-day Ghana.

These objects were taken as part of an indemnity imposed on the
Asante Kingdom by British forces during the Third Anglo-Asante War
of 1873–74. They were sold to Garrard & Co., the Crown Jeweller in
London, where they were acquired by collectors, including Sir Richard
Wallace (1818–1890).

The gold regalia, which so captivated European audiences in the 19th
century, were not only symbols of wealth and power, but also important
marks of identity and belonging. They incorporate a rich cultural and
spiritual vocabulary personified in human, animal and geometric forms
influenced by Akan, Islamic and European designs.

With a striking golden head as the centrepiece, one of the largest historic gold objects from Africa outside Egypt,
this display will investigate the deeper cultural significance of these pieces and explore their duality as trophies of
war and the soul of the Asante.

This display has been produced by the Wallace Collection in collaboration with the Manhyia Palace Museum in
Kumasi, Ghana.

Find out more here.