ID
210840
Edo designations
English designations
Stool
Categories
Ceremonial Objects
Location
1 Adesogbe (Plymouth) Road, P.M.B. 1115, Benin City , Edo State
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Stool
Stool
Stool

Iconographies

5 annotations
Igan
Feather

Igan (feathers) are commonly depicted tucked into the headdresses and hats of chiefs represented on Emwin Arre (royal treasures). These feathers are from the Oɛɣohɔ (vulturine fish eagle) and symbolise respected old age and proper chieftaincy ( ).

1 annotation
Igan
Agbada
Sword

Agbada is a type of short sword with a double-edged blade, used by warriors in hand-to-hand combat ( ; ; Ọbazee 2025, p. 10). Warrior figures carrying Agbada are often depicted on the Ama-Ẹrọnmwọn (bronze relief plaques), both in scenes of combat and in ceremonial contexts.

2 annotations
Agbada
Agbada
Ekhara
Umbrella

Ekhara (umbrellas) play a multifaceted role in Benin art, reflecting both their function as status symbols and their association with European visitors. On some Ama-Ẹrọnmwọn (bronze relief plaques), sunshades resembling Asa are held by the Ọba’s attendants to protect him from the sun. European-style Ekhara, as we know them today, are also depicted in late 19th-century wooden carvings produced by the Emada. In her analysis of the Aken'ni Elao, Barbara Blackmun ( ) observed that on earlier objects, umbrellas were generally depicted only in the hands of foreign figures rather than those identified as members of the Benin Kingdom.

On later objects, particularly those dating to the late 19th century, this changes. The Ọba and high-ranking chiefs such as the Ezọmọ are depicted being shielded from the sun by attendants carrying Ekhara, a practice also described by Europeans visiting Benin City (e.g., ). Like many imported luxury goods, the Ekhara was incorporated into the visual language of royal power and became an important status symbol, associated with the wealth, authority, and elevated position of those permitted to use it.

1 annotation
Ekhara
Osisi
Gun

Osisi is the general Edo word for guns. Osisi were initially introduced to the Benin Kingdom by the Portuguese from the late 16th century onwards and were again traded by the Dutch from the early 17th century (Osadolor 2007, p. 80). Osisi are usually represented as being carried by, or positioned close to, figures identified as Portuguese based on their attire and hairstyles. There are a small number of exceptions, including two wooden carved examples. One is a possible chair seat where a figure is holding a gun upright, and another is a carved wooden panel where a gun is shown next to an Edo dignitary. Additionally, a more recent work produced by the artist H. I. Erhabor includes an Edo figure holding a gun.

These weapons quickly became a potent symbol in the work of artists from the royal guilds, representing the Ọba’s military might, expansionist policies, and the wealth derived from foreign trade (Plankensteiner 2007, p. 208). Three different kinds of European-manufactured guns were used by the Edo army: the flintlock, the wheellock, and later the matchlock, which was used from the 1600s until around 1850. However, Ọba Akengbuda became increasingly wary of Edo dependence on European firearms and encouraged the production of firearms by the Igun Ematon. During the 19th century, the trade in firearms from Europe resumed, with Dane guns, so named because they were made in Denmark. However, from 1890, European imperial powers banned the trade in firearms to West Africa (Osadolor 2007, pp. 80–81).

1 annotation
Osisi

Provenance

5 events
Production
unknown to February 22, 1897 (day approximate)
The object was produced by Unknown member(s) of the Igbesamwan guild in Benin City.
Looted
February 22, 1897 (day approximate) to June 1899 (year approximate)
The object was looted by February 1897 Unknown member of the British colonial military campaign on Benin from Benin Kingdom.
Unknown
February 22, 1897 (day approximate) to 1898
The object is known to have come into contact with William Downing Webster, later in Bicester.
Purchase
1898
The object was purchased by the Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin from William Downing Webster from Bicester to Berlin.
Restitution
August 25, 2022
The object was restituted by the Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin to the Omo n'Oba n'Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Ọba of Benin & National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Nigeria through Hermann Parzinger and Abba Isa Tijani from Berlin to Nigeria.

Related archival documents

2 documents
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Date
Date

Institution data

Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
The data was transferred directly by the institution.
Last updated: 2021-06-14
Language: german
Institution fieldValue
ID
object id
210840
Sachbegriff
designation
Sachbegriff: Reliefplatte
Titel
designation
Objektref.
description
VIII A 10706, Positiv, SW, Schnitzerei, Holz, Kurt Grunst (*04.04.1921); E 534/1898, Erwerbung: I/80/1898: III C 8054-8084, VI 14555-14556, Ethnogr. (Benin; N. Guinea), Webster, 1898, William Downing Webster (1895); VIII A 10705, Positiv, SW, Schnitzerei, Holz, Kurt Grunst (*04.04.1921)
Texte Online
description
Online Beschreibung, Reliefiertes Stuhlbein mit Darstellung eines Portugiesen mit Schwert und Regenschirm, am Gürtel ein weiteres Schwert und eine Pistole. Unter dem Schirm und im unteren Feld je eine Kanone. [Benin_Königreich]
Material / Technik
material
Material: Holz, Metall; Ausgabe: Holz, Metall
Material / Technik // Alle
material
Holz, Metall, Holz, Metall
Maße
dimensions
40,00 x 13,50 x 1,50 cm; ca. 0,60 kg
Objekttyp
object type
Allgemein
Sachbegr. Ausgabe
object type
Stuhlbein (Leg of a chair)
Anzahl Teile
object count
1
Datierung
date made
19. Jh.
Geogr. Bezüge
production place
Nigeria ( Land ); Benin ( Königreich )
Geogr. Bezüge // Alle
production place
Nigeria, Benin
Beteiligte
prior source
William Downing Webster (1895), Veräußerer
Beteiligte // (Name, Sortierung=kleinste)
prior source
Webster, William Downing
Veräußerer
prior source
null
Erwerb. Notiz
provenance
Erwerbung von: [William Downing] Webster; Notiz: Rückführung Wiesbaden; Ausgabe: 19. Jh., im Auftrag im Königreich Benin gegeben; Besitz vor 1897 derzeit unbekannt; vermutlich geplündert im Zusammenhang mit der britischen Eroberung von Benin, 1897; in unbekanntem Besitz zwischen Feb. 1897 und 1898; erworben vom Museum für Völkerkunde von William D. Webster, 1898.
Verw. Institution
department and institution
Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Erwerb. Datum
accession date
1898
Besitzart
accession method
Eigentum
Erwerbungsart
accession method
Ankauf
Digital Assets
images
Vorlage; Vorlage; III C 8069.JPG, Repro Digitalisat; III C 8069-B.JPG, Repro Digitalisat
Erwerb. Nr.
I/80/1898
Ident. Nr.
III C 8069
Ident. Nr. // (Sortiernr.)
0003 C 08069
Obj. Status
vorhanden
Sensitive Content

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