Lot Essay
In 1898 a group of so-called Ashanti dancers performed in Amsterdam in the year of the coronation of Wilhelmina. The Kingdom of the Ashanti, now part of Ghana, has been renowed in Western Europe for its gold and the trading of gold since the 15th century. Isaac Israels made various works of this dancers, and was mainly interested in visualizing both the rhythm and colours of these tribal exotic people from Black Africa.