Artifact Record Details
Copyright of the Spurlock Museum. Not-for-profit use allowed for personal, educational, and/or research purposes only, not for publication.
To request permission for publication or other use, please contact the Spurlock Museum Registrar.
Basic Information |
||
|---|---|---|
| Artifact Identification | Yoruba Ibeji with Beaded Cloak (1987.13.0001) | |
| Classification | Communications Artifacts : Ceremonial Artifact : Figure, Votive | |
| Visual Description | Figure with beaded cloak in dark red, orange, and yellow. | |
| Artist/Maker | None | |
| Geographic Location | Africa, Nigeria | |
| Period/Date | Colonial, 20th century | |
| Culture | Yoruba | |
| Locality/Archaeological Site | ||
Physical Analysis |
||
| Dimension 1 (Height) | 26.8 cm | |
| Dimension 2 (Width) | 21.5 cm | |
| Dimension 3 (Depth) | 15.7 cm | |
| Weight | 755 g | |
| Measuring Remarks | None | |
| Materials | Wood, Glass, Pigment--Stain | |
| Manufacturing Processes | Beading, Carving, Staining | |
| Munsell Color Information | Brownish Black (7.5 Y R 1/1) -ns Deep Orange ( 5 Y R 5/12) -ns Vivid Yellow ( 2.5 Y 7/12) -ns | |
Research Remarks |
||
| Published Description | N/A | |
| Scholarly Notes | 3/13/2008: "THE ROLE OF TWINS: The Yoruba people, located primarily in modern Nigeria, have the highest rate of twin births in the world. Among them, twins have a particular importance, since they are considered to be special beings, capable of bring good or bad fortune. Ere Ibeji, carvings of twins, are commissioned if one or both of the twins dies. The carvings are cared form as though living. (12) Usually the Ibeji wear only simple cloth garments. Beaded robes are reserved for royalty, or in some areas the priests of the Shango, who is the god of thunder and lightning. 87.13.1. Gift of Richard and Barbara Faletti. " - Unknown Name, Unknown Date. Figure probably ibeji. Detachable beaded coat is yellow and orange. The piece in the Met. Mus is similar, but better, recognizably authentic. - Unknown, n.d. Ibeji figure. - R. Faletti, 2000 | |
| Comparanda | "The Ibiji, a memorial figure to a twin, proclaims love and honor for the spirit of the twin. The cowrie-covered vest of this figure enhanced it by replicating clothes worn by priests of Sango, a deity associated with twins." - von Kahler Gumpert, Anita. The Timeless Cowrie: Its Significance the World Over. Washington DC: Bead Museum of Washington DC, 2007. Compare Met. Mus. of Art 1986.471 (This number is not accurate). | |
| Bibliography | Fagg, William. African Tribal Images. Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland Museum of Art. 1968; plates 126-132. Sieber, Roy. African Art in the Cycle of Life. Smithsonian Inst. Press. 1987. Vogel, Susan. For Spirits and Kings. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1981. Willet,[-]. African Art. pp. 88,90. Geneen Wright, untitled student paper, 1995 (in research file) | |
Artifact History |
||
| Archaeological Data | N/A | |
| Credit Line/Dedication | Richard and Barbara Faletti Family Collection | |
| Reproduction | no | |
| Reproduction Information | N/A | |