Two views of a twinned lost-wax cast copper alloy figurine from Kuulo Kataa, Mound 118, Unit 62W 4N, Level 3. Lower "foot" plate broken off from figurine body. Height: 3.7 cm. Weight: 13.2 g. Kuulo Kataa, 15 June, 1995.
Two views of a twinned lost wax cast copper alloy figurine from Ngre Kataa, Mound 6, Unit 44N 6W, Feature 5 cluster. Height: 5.9 cm. Weight: 31.3 g. Ngre Kataa, 19 July, 2008.
An educational poster with pictures and text which describes Banda-area village life from the 15th through the 17th centuries. It briefly summarizes what has been learned from archaeological excavations at Kuulo Kataa about metal working. It also outlines the use of wild and domestic animals and the new objects and practices that developed in this time when trade connections with the Niger River area were strong. It is one of five posters prepared for a Banda community event held in July, 2011. Printed versions of the posters are housed in the Banda Cultural Centre, Ahenkro.
An educational poster with pictures and text which describes Banda-area village life during the 13th to the 15th centuries. It briefly summarizes what has been learned from archaeological excavations about handicrafts at Ngre Kataa including metal working and pottery making. It is one of five posters prepared for a Banda community event held in July, 2011. Printed versions of the posters are available in the Banda Cultural Centre, Ahenkro.
Elders of Gape Katoo with the sacred bronze basin, copper alloy vessel, iron knife and "chain" (copper alloy anklet) associated with ancestor Buari Kojo, Bofie, July, 1995.
Front and side views of a twinned, lost-wax-cast copper-alloy figurine from Kuulo Kataa, Mound 130, Unit 95E 108N, Level 2. Height: 3.9 cm. Weight: 3.8 g. Kuulo Kataa, 4 July, 2000.
Front and side views of a lost-wax cast copper alloy figurine from Kuulo Kataa, Mound 130, Unit 95E 108N, Level 3. Height: 3.5 cm. Weight: 2.4 g. Kuulo Kataa, 4 July, 2000.
A copper alloy finger ring made from a rod forged into undulating S-shaped loops and joined at its ends by a flat metal plate. Two views. From Kuulo Kataa, Mound 101, Unit 2W 2S, Level 7. Height: 1.4 cm. Width: 2.6 cm. Weight: 8.4 g. Kuulo Kataa, 9 June, 1995.
Archaeological excavations of Mound 6 at Ngre Kataa in 2009 expose a workshop where blacksmiths produced iron and copper-alloy tools and ornaments. The mound is being excavated in 2 x 2 meter units named for the coordinates of their northeast corner. In unit 50N 0W (foreground), an area of burned soil marks the location where blacksmiths heated metals. A pottery jar sits in place to the right. In surrounding units (50N 2W, 48N 0W, 48N 2W) are large anvil stones where the hot metals would have been hammered and shaped through forging. The mound's stratified deposits suggest that the workshop area was used for many decades, and perhaps centuries, between the years of about 1350 and 1520 CE (Common Era). View across the mound from the northeast looking towards the southwest. Site Ngre Kataa. 27 June, 2009.
Miniature lost wax cast spoon, perhaps a gold weight. From Ngre Kataa, Mound 7, Unit 14N 22E, Level 8. Length: 4.3 cm. Weight: 2.1 g. Ngre Kataa, 27 June, 2009.
A crucible used to process copper alloys from Kuulo Kataa, Mound 130, Unit 95E 102N, Level 12. Crucibles like this would have been used to heat copper alloys to a liquid state for use in casting, including casting through a lost-wax process. Scale in cm. Kuulo Kataa, 27 June, 2000.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Provenance:
Kuulo Kataa, Mound 130, Unit 95E 102N, Level 12
Location(s) Facet:
Kuulo Kataa
Subjects Facet:
Handicraft; Metal casting; Metalworking; Copper alloys; Lost wax casting; Archaeology; Lost-wax process; Crucibles; Artifacts (Antiquities)
Finger ring made from twisted copper alloy wire. From Ngre Kataa, Mound 6, Unit 44N 4W, Level 5. Width: 2.3 cm. Weight: 1.6 g. Ngre Kataa, 8 July, 2009.
A twinned lost wax cast copper alloy figurine from Ngre Kataa, Mound 6, Unit 44N 6W, Feature 5 cluster. Archaeologists interpret the Feature 5 cluster as a shrine placed among metalworking facilities. Height: 5.9 cm. Weight: 31.3 g. Ngre Kataa, 19 July, 2008.
A finger ring made of twisted copper alloy wire is photographed in situ. Base of level 5, unit 44N 4W, Mound 6, Ngre Kataa. Scale in 5 centimeter increments. Ngre Kataa, 8 July, 2009.
A piece of a copper alloy (brass) bar, found in association with burned features that archaeologists interpret as linked to metalworking (left: side view; right, end views). The bar is square in cross-section (right). One end appears finished and has a slight circular depression or dimple (bottom right). The other end (top right) is jagged and appears to be broken from a longer bar. The artifact was recovered from soil associated with an amorphous burned feature, underneath which were a series of burned basins likely created by forging activities. The object is similar in appearance to brass bars known from the Ma'adin Ijafen cache of brass ingots documented by Theodore Monod in eastern Mauritania in the 1960s. As such, this may be the form in which metalworkers got the copper alloys that were worked at the site. Length: 1.7 cm. Weight: 2.8 g. Scale in cm. Site Ngre Kataa. 25 June 2009.
Skilled craftsmen at the Centre for National Culture in Kumasi, Ghana demonstrate techniques of lost wax casting by making souvenir items like the brass bottle opener pictured here (bottom left). To the right (and top left) is a discarded lost-wax-casting mold that has been broken open to remove the finished objects. This mold produced two bottle openers. The inside of the mold shows the impressions left by the original wax models when they were encased in ashy clay (black matrix). Visbile toward the base of the casting mold are impressions of the tubes, out of which the melted wax drained and through which the molten brass was poured to fill the mold. Brass bottle opener height: 9 cm. Kumasi, Ghana. 4 July 2009.
A large grinding stone (GS 08-04) rests insitu along the south edge of unit 48N 4W in an area (mound 6) that archaeologists interpret as a metallurgical workshop. The stone's visible surface is concave in profile, a result of use. The surface that is oriented face down exhibited greater wear from grinding. The white marks on the stone's upper surface were created by excavators' tools as they dug. A piece of copper alloy rod (greenish in color, SF 08-53) is visible insitu in soil below the center of the grindstone. Root fragments are seen in the surrounding soil. Photo scale in cm. View looking south. Site Ngre Kataa. 1 July 2008.
A small piece of slag (top) and a copper alloy ( brass) rod fragment (bottom, SF 08-053). The greenish hue of the rod is a product of weathering. These artifacts were found next to one another in unit 48N 4W in an area (mound 6) that archaeologists interpret as a metallurgical workshop. They were found adjacent to and below a large grinding stone (GS 08-04). Site Ngre Kataa. 1 July 2008.