In Ghana, the independent nation formerly known as the Gold Coast, goldhas functioned as currency, regalia, symbol, and medium of diplomacy. Curator Roslyn Walker designed the special exhibition The Power of Gold at the Dallas Museum of Art by using its titular medium as an entry point for exploring the structures and visual culture of the Asante Empire. Spanning three centuries, The Power of Gold: Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana presented over 250 objects in a range of media, including crowns, sword ornaments, ceremonial furniture, textiles, pectoral disks, weapons, a state umbrella, musical instruments, and jewelry that illustrate the breadth and complexity of Asante material culture. Drawing on the DMA's collection of African art, which they began cultivating in 1969, as well as a selection of prominent loans, The Power of Gold was the first American museum exhibition dedicated to Asante regalia in over thirty years and foregrounded the complex...

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