#volta niger

This dance staff has been carved in the form of a kneeling priestess holding a sacrificial chicken and ram. She wears a crown in the shape of Shango’s distinctive double axe, which symbolises his dual character: violent and compassionate. These blades also evoke the Neolithic stone tools that are said to be hurled to earth by Shango during thunderstorms. Only senior priestesses or priests devoted to Shango, the Yoruba god of thunder and lightning, can dance with such a staff in ritual performances and other events.

Tunic made by the Yoruba people of Nigeria (Early/mid–20th century)

This imposing sculptural headdress would have been worn in masquerades honouring Ogun, the Yoruba god of iron, warfare, and technology. It was also part of a shrine where offerings of yams were applied to its surface. Ogun is depicted as a warrior on horseback who carries a shield with four human heads, possibly slain enemies. The smaller figure playing a flute represents Eshu, the divine messenger and god of human destiny.

This wooden mask, which would have been worn over the head like a helmet, is an example of an art form that is found almost exclusively among the Yewa tribe (formerly known as Egbado), a Yoruba subgroup inhabiting the northwestern part of Yorubaland. A gelede is a festival of masks performed in veneration of the society’s powerful older women, the iyami. Yewa Yoruba communities perform gelede annually, at which time they formally recognise the powers of the iyami, and solicit their benevolence to ensure the prosperity of the community.

This dynamic mask of the gelede type depicts two hunters wrestling with a pangolin (or scaly anteater), representing the struggle between civilisation and nature, human intelligence and animal force. The figures are shown grabbing the mammal by its back legs but also seem to be losing their balance and giving the pangolin a chance to escape. The dramatic tension of this mask’s upper section presents a sharp contrast to the serene human face below.

This stool was made for an altar dedicated to Shango, the Yoruba god of thunder, lightning, justice, dance, and virility. At its centre is a Shango priest—identifiable by his double-bladed staff and cape covered in cowrie shells—and a woman who reclines before him in a formal greeting. Moving clockwise, they are encircled by a man playing a drum; two women devotees, one of whom is holding a chicken for sacrifice; a rifle-toting soldier leading a bound captive; and a woman holding a large offering bowl. The motif of the soldier and captive reflects the violent invasions that marked the era.

Slippers (Bata Ileke) made by the Yoruba people of Nigeria (Late 19th/early 20th century)

The potters in and around the town of Osogbo are known for their tall, cylindrical jars. This elaborately decorated vessel features a human face at the midpoint of its long neck, which suggests that it was made for a shrine dedicated to the goddess Oshun (Mother of Life-Giving Waters), the namesake of the river near Osogbo. It likely held river stones and water.