Collections and items in our institution have incomplete, inaccurate, and/or missing attribution. We are using this notice to clearly identify this material so that it can be updated, or corrected by communities of origin. Our institution is committed to collaboration and partnerships to address this problem of incorrect or missing attribution.
Our institution is committed to the development of new modes of collaboration, engagement, and partnership with Indigenous peoples for the care and stewardship of past and future heritage collections.
The TK Notice is a visible notification that there are accompanying cultural rights and responsibilities that need further attention for any future sharing and use of this material. The TK Notice may indicate that TK Labels are in development and their implementation is being negotiated. For more information about the TK Notice, visit localcontexts.org.
Learn more about our Local Contexts research and to connect with Newfields' staff.
24 x 4 x 2 in.
Roger G. Wolcott Fund
(Charles D. Miller, III, St. James, New York); purchased by the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields in 1996.
Among Akan peoples, gold objects are used by rulers to reinforce their authority. The images on those objects often symbolize proverbs full of positive communal wisdom.
Flywhisks, devices to keep insects away, are used in many parts of Africa. Among Akan peoples, prestige flywhisks have gold covered handles to which are affixed animal tails. The handle depicts two men with a game board between them. This is a capture game, played under various names, in different places in Africa. One Akan proverb associated with the game board is "to play the game board, you have to know the rules," that is, to be a functioning member of society, you have to understand and follow society's rules. Thus, the flywhisk not only provides a leader with a display of gold, but also provides the community with a positive message.
Metadata about the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s collection comes from Newfields’ records and research. In some cases, information may be incomplete and research is ongoing. Newfields’ goal is to have as up-to-date metadata as possible, therefore, this information is subject to change. Newfields collections’ metadata is available under a Creative Commons Zero (CC0) waiver, which allows for re-use without legal restrictions.
Artworks that appear in the image file(s) above may be in copyright or have other legal and/or cultural restrictions to their use. For clarity, Newfields does not claim copyright to the image files created by Newfields of artworks in the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s collection. Newfields makes every effort to ascertain the copyright status of artworks in the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s collection. Please refer to the RightsStatements.org statement above for information about the current copyright status of the artwork. Additionally, some artworks may include Local Context’s Notices or Labels that attribute cultural authority of the artwork’s heritage and data.
Additional information about Newfields’ reproduction guidelines can be found in the Licensing Resources.
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This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services [MA-251861-OMS-22].