Akua'ba (sometimes spelled Akwaba or Akuba) are wooden dolls representing prosperity, good luck and fertility. Typically from Western Ghana and nearby areas, this special guy is from the Congo. The best known akua'ba are those of the Fanti people, "Fanti Dolls" whose akua'ba have large, disc-like heads.
Traditionally, these dolls are carried on the back of young women either hoping to conceive a child, or to ensure the attractiveness of the child being carried. When not in active use, the akua'ba would be ritually washed and cared for in the traditional homestead.
Akuaba Fanti African Statue of Mother Nursing Her Infant 16" high
This is a lovely dyad of mother and infant breastfeeding. According to the appraiser this is a "vintage Fanti carved mother and child group Akuaba area of Southern Ghana, 20th Century The carved hardwood figure depicting a mother and nursing child seated on a stool, the back with incised markings and with white highlights throughout."