A Superb Fante Drum, Ghana

ompe, of enormous proportions, the oval shaped drum with figurative design in relief and eight conical breasts in two vertical rows; covered with goat hide (capra hircus); fine varied brown patina with green, white, dark and light blue pigment.

Sherwin Memel, Los Angeles

Doran H. Ross, "Queen Victoria for Twenty-Five Pounds: The Iconography of a Breasted Drum from Southern Ghana," Art Journal, No. 47, Vol. 2, Summer 1988, p. 117, fig. 10

excellent condition overall; small hole in goat hide; left breast in bottom row broken and reattached; nicks and scratches from handling; fine varied brown patina with green, white, dark and light blue pigment.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

For further information on Sherwin Memel see lot 102.

A Fante Ompe Drum, Ghana

This drum was once the centerpiece of a traditional Fante popular band called ompe, translated by J. H. K Nketia as "who doesn't like it." These voluntary musical associations were organized by the Fante and other Akan groups for leisure time entertainment and for performances at local festivals and funerals. The latter are especially lavish among the Akan and it is said that some people join the groups to ensure a proper send-off upon their own demise. Although these bands are increasingly replaced by electronic media, a number are still active.  The visual and musical focal point of the band is typically a large drum conceptualized as a female, "the mother of the group," with anywhere from one to eight breasts carved on the front. At least eight drums by this as yet unidentified carver are known. He seems to have been active along the coast of what is now the Central Region of Ghana from about 1930 to 1955. In 1976 an ompe group in Anomabu still had a four-breasted drum by this carver and a second drum with two breasts by the same artist belonged to another local and rival group called "Moses," because "he brought his people together." The circular recession below the breasts on the Memel drum probably once held a clock, or at least a clock face, indicating that the group is always on time and knows when to perform.

 

Rivalries between bands are often represented on the relief carving that envelops most of these drums. This example has at least twenty proverbial motifs depicted on its surface and many of these images are also found on the appliqué flags of the highly competitive traditional Fante military groups (asafo). For example, one image on the drum (also common on flags) depicts a man reaching into a pot of boiling water in front of a rival illustrating the expression: "It boils, but it doesn't burn." The benign pot of boiling water stands for the rival musical group that proves ineffective when challenged to perform. Another motif depicts a small supposedly clever antelope called a duiker positioned above an elephant representing the maxim, "Although the elephant is the strongest animal, it is the wise duiker that rules the forest," a saying that obviously values wisdom over brute strength. The line of figures with shouldered arms encircling the base of the drum acknowledge the pre-independence British Native Authority Police that required permits or "passes" for performances, since competitions between bands occasionally resulted in public disturbances.

 

Doran H. Ross

 

Bibliography:

Herbert M. Cole and Doran H. Ross. The Arts of Ghana. Los Angeles, 1977

J. H. Nketia, Drumming in Akan Communities of Ghana. London, 1963

Doran H. Ross, "Queen Victoria for Twenty-Five Pounds: The Iconography of a Breasted Drum from Southern Ghana," Art Journal, no. 47, vol. 2, pp. 114-120