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Drum

Artist: Osei Bonsu (1900–1977)
Asante peoples, Ghana
c. 1935
Wood, paint, hide, metal
National Museum of African Art, gift of Dr. Robert Portman, 81-20-1

Among the Asante and neighboring peoples, voluntary music associations provide entertainment for a variety of occasions, including weddings, funerals and festivals. Osei Bonsu, the most important Asante sculptor of the 20th century, is particularly well known for the drums he created for the Ntan society and the groups of figures that were originally displayed with them. According to Osei Bonsu, many of the motifs on his drums relate to Asante proverbs and refer to the qualities the society seeks in its members or to the society’s relationship to the town.

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