Soul-Washer's Badge

no date

Asante, African

On View

African: Fit for a King, Level 1, North Wing

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About the Artwork

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Markings

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Provenance

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Exhibition History

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

Ghana is part of an area that was a major source of gold for European and Islamic markets prior to the discovery of the metal in the Americas. The Asante and other rulers there maintained large courts of officials. One group of high-ranking attendants at court who participated in ceremonies glorifying the king wore a special gold disk known as a "soul-washer's badge." This badge was taken from the king's bedroom by Lieutenant R.C. Annesley of the 79th Queens Own Cameron Highlanders, part of the British military expedition that captured the Asante capital of Kumasi on February 4, 1874.

Title Soul-Washer's Badge

Artwork Date no date

Artist ----------

Life Dates ----------

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. African

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. Asante

Medium Gold

Dimensions Overall: 1/4 × 3 1/2 inches (0.6 × 8.9 cm)

Classification Jewelry

Department African Art

Credit Founders Society Purchase, New Endowment Fund and Friends of African Art Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 81.701

Markings

Inscriptions ------

Provenance

R. C. Annesley

Lt. R. C. Annesley

Asantehene Kofi Karikari. (Alan Brandt, Inc., New York, New York, USA)

1981-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

For more information on provenance and its important function in the museum, please visit:

Provenance page

Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

We welcome your feedback for correction and/or improvement.

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Published References

African Masterworks In The Detroit Institute of Arts. Washington and London: The Detroit Institute of Arts and Smithsonian Institution Press, 1995, cat. no. 22.

Bulletin of the DIA 60, no. 1/2. (1981-82): p. 34 (ill.).

Quarcoopome, Nii. “Akan Leadership and Status Objects,” Bulletin of the DIA 91, no. 1-4 (2017): p. 40 (fig. 2.19).

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

Asante, African, Soul-Washer's Badge, no date, gold. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, New Endowment Fund and Friends of African Art Fund, 81.701.