Miss Morgue

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— Where did you go?, Hishaam Siddiqi

“Young Woman and Death”, Hans Baldung, 1517.

The British Museum

This object possibly supported an ivory tusk on an altar. The depiction of four female figures holding gongs suggests an association with an iyoba, or queen mother. Two figures strike bird gongs, which symbolize the infallibility of the oba.

This plaque shows an Oba surrounded by his attendants, two of whom are depicted holding up their shields in a formal protective stance. Only the Oba was allowed to be shaded in this way within the city.”

The spiral bands of incised, crosshatched half-ovals and dotted lines, set within raised, striated borders, terminate at either end in elongated crocodile heads. The artist has taken great care to evoke the appearance and character of these animals. Perpendicular lines along the snouts, as well as rows of bumps on the forehead, suggest the distinctive texture of crocodile skin, while the close-set eyes with contrasting pupils evoke the watchful gaze of this dangerous animal. The depictions of crocodiles, as with other forms of aquatic imagery, associates the ruler with Olokun, god of the sea. The ocean was conceived of as a major source of wealth and prosperity for the Benin kingdom, which benefited from overseas trade with Portugal and other European powers. A realm of unfathomable depths, it also served as a metaphor for the vast, hidden powers of the ruler.”

“This is one of the oldest surviving African ivory sculptures; only six of these ivory gongs are known. Double gongs were used by the oba (king) during the Emobo ceremony to drive away evil spirits. The carving here depicts theoba, supported by his military commander and his heir.”

The Oba is represented on the armlet with mudfish legs and his hands raised to the sky, thus linking him with the great god Olokun, ruler of the sea. The mudfish has symbolic significance among the Edo people as it can live on land and sea. Similarly, the Oba is invested with divine powers from the spiritual world above and the secular world below.”

“The ancestral altars of the Oba, or ruler of Benin, feature carved elephant tusks like this one, set into the top of a cast bronze portrait head. Because of its rarity and permanence, ivory is especially suitable for recording royal historical events, and many tusks recount episodes from Benin history or lives of the Obas. This tusk may have come from the altar of an Ezomo, the highest-ranking noble in Benin. The figures with fishtails instead of legs refer to the Oba himself (the Oba traces his descent from Olokun, lord of the sea, and thus controls the realms of both water and land). In the fourth row, on the inside of the curve of the tusk, is an elephant, probably referring to the Iyase n'Ode, a famous military leader who was able to transform himself into an elephant. He almost overthrew two Obas before being defeated by a loyal Ezomo. This episode from Benin folklore helps to secure the powerful role of the present Ezomo, who must act as protector to the royal house. Other images include the leopard, a royal symbol because of its power and intelligence; Adesua, an Ezomo’s young daughter, whose actions brought trouble to Benin; members of the Oba’s special guard who wear the bronze image of a royal leopard on their belts; and Portuguese soldiers (with long, straight hair and beards), allies of Benin since the fifteenth century. Additional figures represent nobles, attendants, and soldiers of the Oba.”

Heart of Bone jewelry

Dorotheenstädtischer Friedhof, Berlin - Deutschland