Janus funerary image, Twifo-Hemeng Confederacy;
Ghana
Terracotta; H. 10 1/2"
Memorial heads such as this example
have at least a 400-year heritage among the Akan
of Ghana, where they represent the retainers or
a generalized portrait of an important elder, either
male or female. They were not positioned on the
grave but placed in either a sacred grove close
to the cemetery or a shrine or stool room where
libations and sacrifices were occasionally offered
and rituals were performed. Janus heads of this
type are rare, and examples such as this with balanced,
elegant faces are rarer still. Based on stylistic
characteristics, this head may be attributed to
the so-called Twifo-Hemang confederacy (sometimes
called Hemang-Twifo). This example was thermo-luminescence
tested and yielded a date of 140 +/- 30 BP).
