This ivory pendant mask is one of a pair of nearly identical works; its counterpart is in the British Museum in London. Although images of women are rare in Benin's courtly tradition, these two works have come to symbolize the legacy of a dynasty that continues to the present day. The pendant mask is believed to have been produced in the early sixteenth century for the Oba Esigie, the king of Benin, to honor his mother, Idia. The Oba may have worn it at rites commemorating his mother, although today such pendants are worn at annual ceremonies of spiritual renewal and purification.
In Benin, ivory is related to the color white, a symbol of ritual purity that is associated with Olokun, god of the sea. As the source of extraordinary wealth and fertility, Olokun is the spiritual counterpart of the Oba. Ivory is central to the constellation of symbols surrounding Olokun and the Oba. Not only is it white, but it is itself Benin's principle commercial commodity and it helped attract the Portuguese traders who also brought wealth to Benin.
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Thomas Gainsborough 1727-1788
British
The Baillie Family
circa 1784
Oil on canvas (Oc)
support 2508mm x 2273mm
painting
Bequeathed by Alexander Baillie 1868
N00789
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Palace door
Artist: Olowe of Ise (c.1875-c.1938)
Yoruba/Nigerian
Wood, pigments
221.3 cm (87 1/8 in)
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Sir Joshua Reynolds 1723-1792
British
Admiral Viscount Keppel
1780
Oil on canvas (Oc)
support 1245mm x 991mm
painting
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Staff (opa Osanyin or opa Erinle)
Yoruba peoples, Nigeria
Iron
71 cm (27 in)
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John Singer Sargent 1856-1925
British
Colonel Ian Hamilton, CB, DSO
1898
Oil on canvas (Oc)
support 1384mm x 787mm
painting
signed
Presented by Gen. Sir Ian Hamilton 1940
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