Female Figure (akua'ba)
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Verified CC0

This record carries an explicit CC0 marker in the source metadata. Download the publication copy or follow the source record for its master image.

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Rights signal
CC0
Publication file
484 × 893 px · WebP
Suggested credit
Female Figure (akua'ba) (late 1800s–early 1900s). Gift of Katherine C. White Rights: CC0. https://clevelandart.org/art/1975.158

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From the museum record

An infertile woman would be advised by a priest to commission such a sculpture and care for it as if it were her baby. With the aim to induce fertility, or to ensure the birth of a healthy and beautiful daughter, the akua'ba figure is carried on the woman's back inside her wrapper. After a successful birth, the figure is placed in the priest's shrine as an offering, or it is given to the newborn as a toy.

Lupin’s visual index

A weathered wooden walking stick adorned with black feathers and intricate carvings stands upright against a dark gray background.

Machine-assisted description · useful for discovery, not scholarship.
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Female Figure (akua'ba)

Female Figure (akua'ba)
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