Ashanti Nine-sided Footed Low Trunk

Nine sides, four stubby feet, and a lid that keeps its own counsel.

Ashanti makers of Ghana, West Africa, built this footed low trunk in wood in the 20th century. Chests of this sort were commonly used to keep cloth, regalia and personal valuables close at hand. The lid and body are cut as a nine-sided shape, stepped with a molded edge, and the whole sits on four squat block feet. The wood is dark reddish brown, scuffed pale along the corners, with a split showing across the top and the dry sheen of long handling.

About 13 inches high and 23 across. Put a lamp on it and it becomes the most serious table in the room.