Ancient Carved Lidded Bowl
| Possibly 16th Century, originally made of ivory and brass. This unusual bowl, constructed of several seperate pieces of ivory, was found in the King of Benin's bedchamber. It is unusual in being decorated with strips of brass. The human faces and the interlace motifs are typical Benin designs. |
Oni Ife Chief | Early 14th/15th Century, originally made of zinc brass. This statue of an Oni, dated by thermoluminescence, is the only unbroken full-length "bronze" standing figure discovered in Ife to date. He wears the traditional regalia: a crown, a heavy beaded collar around the neck, a heavy rope of beads around the outer edge of the trunk, finer necklaces covering the chest with a double bow in the center- a badge of his office as King. In his left hand he holds a ram's horn filled with "magical substances" (called ashe) and in his right a sceptre made of beads and cloth, both symbols of his authority and power. |
Crowned Head of an Oni | 12th/15th Century, origianlly made of zinc brass. The features on this smaller-than-lifesize crowned head are particularly delicate, leading some to hypothesize this head may portray a female Oni. The refined overall patterns, which probably represent a scarification, also serve to emphasize the delicate modeling of the features. |