Details

Object type

stool

Title

mma’ gwa

Culture/School

Asante

Place Associated

Africa, West Africa, Ghana, Royal Palace of Kumasi (place found)

Date

before 1874

Materials

asese wood, Funtumia africana

Description

This stool was looted from the Asante Royal Palace of Kumasion February 4th 1874 and proabably bought later at auction at Cape Coast by General sir Archibald Alison. The Asante are famous for their ceremonial stools carved with an arched seat set over a foot, which is a symbol of wisdom. In Asante, every stool in use has its own particular significance and its own special name that denotes the gender, social status or clan of its owner. The number and shape of the stool supports and the decorative motifs indicate the stool's name. This stool is of a type known as Mma' gwa or woman's stool. It is carved from asese wood (Funtumia africana). The Mma' gwa has 5 supports, with the central support or sekyedua slightly rounded, a checkerboard motif known as dame dame piercing the central support only, and saw-toothed projections known as nkye kyewa along the 4 outer supports. The incised decorative motifs along the base indicate that this stool was used by a queen mother or Asantehemaa. This shape and the placement of incised design is commonly found on queen mother stools and distinguishes the stool from an ordinary woman's stool.As the stool was also found in the Royal Court it undoubtedly belonged to Afua Kobi I, the Asante queen-mother from 1857 – 1884.

Early in the morning February 4th 1874, a British Punitive Expedition Force entered Kumasi under the command of Sir Garnet Wolseley whose troops removed all the valuable objects they could find. On the 6th of February after sacking and burning the city, the British pulled out and marched back to the coast with their booty.

See also: Reinterpreting and Redisplaying Conflict and Consequences

See also: A Looted Royal Stool

ID Number

1874.22

Location

In storage