Superb ceremonial wooden spoon, typical of the Dan ethnic group of Ivory Coast

Length: 46 cm

The African spoon

Spoons were found in all regions of Africa, with uses that could vary. Most often - Africans ate in everyday life by grasping food with their right hand only - the use of a spoon marked an exceptional meal, a feast, a sharing of sacred foods or the solitary meal of a sovereign whose divine nature forbade him from being seen eating.

The possession of a spoon therefore went well beyond a simple utilitarian function and constituted an outward sign of wealth and prestige.

The spoon was almost always made up of two parts: The spoon itself on one side and on the other side a figurative part most often representing a human character, or the upper or lower half (as in the model presented here), of a character, sometimes with a connecting element (as is the case here) between these two parts.

The Dan spoon

Côte d'Ivoire, and particularly the Dan, has produced a large number of very beautiful spoons whose handle is made up of either a female bust or legs.

The Dan spoon is a ceremonial spoon awarded to a woman - wadeke or wunkirle - considered the best cook and banquet organizer and noted for her generous hospitality. The tribal chief requires her services when exceptional circumstances, particularly funerals, require the organization of a feast. The spoon is then used to distribute rice and meat from the wadeke's reserves. To make her banquet a success, the cook needs the help of a spirit who is embodied in the large spoons and through them comes to collaborate in the preparation of the feast.