Ornate, cast brass vessels known as kuduo were the possessions of kings and courtiers in the Akan kingdoms of Ghana and Ivory Coast. Gold dust and nuggets were kept in kuduo, as were other items of personal value and significance. As receptacles for their owners’ kra, or life force, they were prominent features of ceremonies designed to honor and protect that individual. At the time of his death, a person’s kuduo was filled with gold and other offerings and included in an assembly of items left at the burial site. The greenish patina of the present container indicates it spend a long time in the ground, accompanying its former owner in the afterlife. The elaborate form and complex iconography of this kuduo reveal the broad range of aesthetic traditions from which the Akan peoples have drawn to create their courtly arts. Goods from Europe and North Africa, received in exchange for Akan gold, textiles, and slaves, included vessels that may have partly inspired the design of this and other kuduo. The repeating bands of geometric patterns incised into the surface, as well as the shape of the vessel may reflect Islamic influences. A latch mechanism on the exterior signals the value of the materials kept within and alludes to the vessel’s symbolic function of keeping its owner’s kra secure. On top we find an exquisite representation of an elephant and a hunter. Only a single other kuduo with this iconography is known, formerly in the collection of the British artist Tom Phillips and published on the front cover of his book on Akan goldweights. The British Museum owns a kuduo with the lid crowned by an elephant, its tail equally forming a fan (Af1956,27.42).
The elephant was both unpredictably dangerous – spiritually as well as physically – and the largest single source of animal food in Akan forests. This made elephant hunting a perilous venture. Furthermore, the Akan had the intrinsic belief that just like mankind, some animals, including the elephant, had spirits which survived the death of the animal. Hunters classified wild animals into two: those with spirit (sasammoa) and those without (mmoa). The former were deemed to have malevolent spirits which lived on after the animal had been killed by a hunter, and which could haunt its killer and cause calamity to befall him during subsequent hunting expeditions. Uniquely among these animals, the killing of the elephant reportedly brought honor to the hunter; for this reason, and despite the inherent risks, some hunters targeted the elephant, while others avoided it. Clearly, the elephant enjoyed special status among animals with spirit (sasammoa), because it was considered as the king of the jungle. This is illustrated by Akan proverbs such as ‘Gsono akyiri nni aboa’ (‘there is no wild animal besides elephant’), ‘wodi Gsono akyiri a hasuo nka wo’ (‘if you follow the trail of elephant you would not be drenched by dew’). The powerful elephant was hence chosen as emblem by many paramount chiefs. Denkyira for example was once a powerful state in the forest belt and, until 1701, was the super power in the region; its subjects included Asante, Wassa, Sehwi, Twifo, Aowin and Adanse. Not surprisingly, Denkyira adopted the elephant, ‘the king of all animals’, as its totem. Besides its cultural role, the elephant had economic importance as well. Firstly, it was hunted for its tusk and meat which were of high economic value. Ivory was a highly prized object of trade whilst elephant flesh was an abundant source of food. The peoples of Gold Coast in medieval times developed commercial ties with the peoples of Western Sudan. Two caravan trade routes were developed to link the commercial empires of Western Sudan with the savannah and forest belts of Ghana. The ivory trade was mainly associated with rulers; this was because, by custom, part of the ivory obtained had to be given to the ruler, who used some for ornamental purposes and sold the rest for his upkeep. The presence of an elephant hunter on a prestigious container as a kuduo thus shouldn’t come as a surprise in a class-conscious society as the Akan.