7 - Benin, Nigeria

Benin, Nigeria (Periods/Cultures/Kingdoms)

Kingdom: Kingdom of Benin (c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE)

Culture: Benin Post-Exile (c. 1,914_CE - present)

Benin (location)

Nigeria

Kingdom of Benin (dates)

c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE

Kingdom of Benin (c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE) notes

• Ibini (c. 9th century)

  • dysfunctional dynasty

    • “Ibini” = “Land of Vex”

  • their Ogiso dies and they ask Ife to take them over

    • Prince Oramniyan from Ife-Ife comes and takes over, becoming the first Oba of Benin

• Benin (1,200_CE - 1,897_CE)

  • part of Edo culture (speak Edo language; Edo culture encompasses multiple kingdoms)

  • primary art types:

    • bronze commemorative heads, plaques, and figures

    • ivory pendant masks

    • coral bead regalia

      • all exclusive materials to the royal family

Artwork ID: “Head of an Oba”

Kingdom: Kingdom of Benin

Location: Nigeria

Dates: c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE

Medium: brass

“Head of an Oba” notes

• somewhat abstracted facial features (but it only gets more abstracted from here)

• hair is incredibly detailed compared to everything else

  • very important feature

• ikharo marks above eyebrows (on other heads, not this one specifically)

  • 3 = male, 4 = female or foreigner

  • face doesn’t indicate gender otherwise

• similar to bronze heads from Ife

  • Possible influence from Oba Oranmiyan

Artwork ID: “Bronze Plaque Depicting Oba Ohen”

Kingdom: Kingdom of Benin

Location: Nigeria

Dates: c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE

Medium: brass

“Bronze Plaque Depicting Oba Ohen” notes

• fish for legs

  • visual metaphor for his disability

  • hid his legs from his court, killed the man that found out his secret

    • got in trouble b/c the Oba is not above the law

      • became a cautionary tale

Artwork ID: “Tableau Portrait of Oba Ozolua, The Conqueror”

Kingdom: Kingdom of Benin

Location: Nigeria

Dates: c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE

Medium: wood/drawing of wooden stool

“Tableau Portrait of Oba Ozolua, The Conqueror” notes

• Omada style -> more cartoonish

• “warrior king” message

  • usually depicted holding half of a human body, heads, and weapons

  • not well-liked by his subjects and soldiers

    • one of his chiefs maimed his arm to “slow him down”

      • arm is covered in most portraits with a shield (uncovered in this one b/c the artist was one brave bastard)

  • 2 women’s hands holding mirrors

    • Ekpate = women employed to stay in the palace and protect the king from spiritual attacks

      • one of the most powerful spiritual weapons was the mirror

  • 2 leopards represent his father

  • giant floating coral bead 

    • calls him out for not fulfilling his spiritual duties + focusing too much on warfare

Artwork ID: “Palace Altar to an Oba”

Kingdom: Kingdom of Benin

Location: Nigeria

Dates: c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE

Medium: ivory and bronze

“Palace Altar to an Oba” notes

• palace shrine to the Oba

• dismantled by the British during the Benin Massacre (but they had the decency to photograph it first apparently)

Artwork ID: “Ivory Mask of Iyoba Idia”

Kingdom: Kingdom of Benin

Location: Nigeria

Dates: c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE

Medium: ivory, iron, and bronze

“Ivory Mask of Iyoba Idia” notes

• Oba Esigie’s mother

• made of ivory w/ iron and bronze elements mixed in

  • mixing materials was very sacred

• heads of portuguese men make up her crown and necklace

  • this specific mask has mudfish in the crown as well

    • symbol of life and rebirth; during the dry season mudfish burrow unto the mud and die until the rainy season, when they come back to life and return to the river

• a bit more naturalistic than the other pendant masks we’ve seen

• Esigie wrote a letter to his mother while away fighting a battle saying that he didn’t think he would make it back home, so she asked the Portuguese to gather some troops and go assist him, allowing him to win the battle and return home alive

  • an amazing feat of diplomacy on Iyoba Idia’s part

    • became a national symbol

  • Esigie was so grateful he had a pendant mask of her made

Artwork ID: “Plaque of The Oba with Europeans”

Kingdom: Kingdom of Benin

Location: Nigeria

Dates: c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE

Medium: brass

“Plaque of The Oba with Europeans” notes

• Oba Esigie (I think)

• europeans (portuguese) are the funny looking little guys in the background

  • not very important & not the focus, they just happened to be there

  • long hair, different hats, buttons, odd poses

Artwork ID: “Royal “Osun” Spirit Head”

Kingdom: Kingdom of Benin

Location: Nigeria

Dates: c. 1,200_CE - 1,897_CE

Medium: bronze

“Royal “Osun” Spirit Head” notes

• deity that resides in leaves and herbs, typically portrayed with snakes around the face

  • honoring ancestors

  • could speak to ancestors through them

Benin Post-Exile (dates)

c. 1,914_CE - present

Benin Post-Exile (c. 1,914_CE - present) notes

• after the Benin Massacre the British looted and colonized the area, taking control of Benin and exiling the Oba (Oba Ovonramwen)

  • artifacts were stolen and kept by soldiers/officials or exported and auctioned off to museums

    • none of the museums have returned the artifacts in their possession (of f*cking course)

    • museum in Benin is currently being built and is scheduled to open in 2025

      • hopefully will prompt museums to return artifacts

• a figurehead Oba was eventually installed (Oba Akenzua II) but the British still have power

Artwork ID: “Oba Ovonramwen”

Artist:

Culture: Benin Post-Exile

Location: Benin, Nigeria

Dates: c. 1,914_CE - present

Medium: stone

“Oba Ovonramwen” notes

• Oba exiled after the Seige of Benin in 1897

  • based on an image of him being exiled by the British

• head is uncovered, seated, folded arms, not much ornamentation

Oba

divine king of Benin

• means “great head”

ikharo marks

vertical marks above the eyebrows that indicate the gender of the figure

• 3 = male, 4 = female or foreigner

• only on sculptures, not real life

eben sword

a fan-like ceremonial sword associated with the court of the oba of the Benin Kingdom

• used to pledge your allegiance to someone

• the Oba is never depicted holding it

conventional portrait

typical representational portrait

Osun

deity that resides in leaves and herbs

• typically portrayed with snakes around the face

Oba Esigie

• 3rd of 3 Great Obas (Ozolua's son)

• most "cosmopolitan" Oba

  • established strong diplomatic relations with Portugal; also made a religion that mixed Catholicism with traditional Benin religion

• depicts himself differently based on the audience (in Ovia cult garb to show local relatability, in European garb other places, etc.)

Iyoba

queen mother (Oba's mother)

• can't see son once he becomes king b/c there would be too much power in one spot

ekpate

women employed to stay in the palace and protect the king from spiritual attacks

Punitive Expedition/Siege of Benin

• British come to trade during time where Oba has to stay inside for ritual purification, they were told to leave

• quarrel w/ Benin guards led to several British merchants killed

• burned the palace and stole all of the bronzes and artifacts

• exiled Oba Ovonramwen

emblematic portrait

a symbol of someone (such as a leopard) to represent someone in a piece

Oba Oranmiyan (Benin)

the mythical founder of Benin

• grandson of first Oba (1st Oba= grandson of Obatala)

• takes over Ibini/Benin

• 1st king of 2nd Benin dynasty

thunderstone

perfectly round/smooth stones said to have broken off from heaven when lightning struck

• if you found one, you would have to bring it to the palace as an offering

Ibini

means "land of vex"

• probable origin for "Benin"

Olokun

the god of the sea, wealth and creativity in the kingdom of Benin, who was responsible for abundance and prosperity

Oba Ohen

• portrayed with fish for legs as a metaphor for his disability

• the Oba that killed a courtesan for finding out about it and was punished for it

  • turned into a cautionary tale

tableau portrait

shows multiple figures in one composition but focuses on one figure

Ogiso

9th century, before Benin

• very polititcally dysfunctional

• nicknamed “Ibini”