Goldweight with a Geometric Design

This rectangular gold weight has a surface composition consisting of four vertical raised bars and five horizontal raised bars. Gold weights were used for five centuries, between 1400 and 1900, throughout the Akan area of southern Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire as a tool for weighing the local currency, gold dust. Made of a copper alloy, the gold weights enabled merchants to trade with towns in the West African Sahel and North Africa, and later with the Europeans in the late 15th century. Brass cast gold weights ceased being used at the beginning of the 20th century when gold was replaced by bank notes and coinage. However, they continued to be made for sale to tourists.