Àgbo* Woman
33" X 12"
Calabash and cut metal

An Agbo woman becomes pregnant and looks at her belly. This is a story that astounds, this news is overwhelming.

Who was called "Agbo"? Normally , the name Agbo was given to women who were kept celibate and guarded as amazons in an appropriate enclosure.

Why were they given this title?

Agbo signifies buffalo or ram, and was given to them because of their strong physical appearance and their audacity that allowed them to do special exploits at times of war. In actuality, they acted like Agbo rams. Some say, this Agbo denomination embraced certain queens (either widowed or not), who were very brave like the courageous amazons. It is even said that the men who were recruited to guard the queens and their amazons were made eunuchs and also called by the same name.

Apart from the support that the eunuchs had to provide, they were also recruited during times of war as soldiers. In spite of the precautions the king took to save the Amazons from eventual pregnancies, some eunuchs, who were poorly castrated (sometimes they were left with one testicle), or certain princes or a regular visitor of the royal palace, succeeded to sleep with some of them. Certain proverbs attest to name Agbo an individual.

The following song honoring the Voodoo Nesuxwe also testifies to that:
An invincible woman the Agbo,
They tied my name to my son from Togodo?
What a shame!
An Agbo woman with broken ties has uttered my name Princes! Listen to this!
Panicked by the links of death,
An Agbo woman has uttered my name
They tied my name to my son from Togodo?
What a shame!
An Agbo woman with broken ties has uttered my name Princes! Listen to this!

From Akan Mmebusem Bi. Akan Poverbs in Akan and English. Agyewodin Adu Gyamfi Ampem.