Bidspirit auction | Asante Akua’ba Carved Wood Fertility

Asante Akua’ba Carved Wood Fertility Figure Ghana - An Asante (Ashanti) Akua’ba fertility figure from Ghana, hand-carved from a single piece of light-toned wood. This example displays the characteristic stylised features of the genre, including a large, flattened discoid head with an incised geometric border of zig-zag and linear patterns. The face is rendered with high arched brows, horizontal slit eyes, a small triangular nose, and a straight-line mouth. The head rests on a ringed neck that tapers into a columnar torso with pointed, horizontal arm stumps and small, high-set breasts. The centre of the torso is decorated with two panels of incised grid-like geometric markings. The figure stands on a circular, stepped integral base. This piece is typical of mid-to-late 20th-century production for the ethnographic market. Height approx. 14 inches (35.5 cm).