Lot 38
FANTE ASAFO FLAG: ASEBU AMANFI
GHANA
African & Oceanic Art and Antiquities
Auction: 27 November 2018 at 11:00 GMT
Description
cotton applique flag, depicting the mythical giant Asebu Amanfi with three heads and four arms, he holds a machete in one and a stricken warrior in another, on the left a figure is fleeing, with a Union Jack in the top right and a white and black checked border
Dimensions
154 x 120cm
Footnote
Provenance:
Private collection, United Kingdom
Note:
Beginning in the 17th century, the Fante groups which inhabited the south-west coast of modern-day Ghana formed military and political units known as 'asafo' (deriving from sa, meaning war, and fo, meaning people). Each unit developed elaborate traditions of visual art, most striking of all the flags shown here. These comprised of bold naïve imagery appliqued onto a cotton background, they commonly depict indigenous proverbs which relate closely to the commissioning Asafo group. With the British conquest of the region in 1856 many Asafo groups incorporated versions of the Union Jack into the flag to enhance the power of the imagery.
As seen here, the mythical giant Asebu Amanfi was often depicted with multiple heads.