Odigba (coral-beaded collar) is a rigid neck collar made of coral beads, worn as part of ceremonial attire only by senior princes who have been made Enigie (Inneh 2007, p. 107). Although Ibafe (2007, p. 43) argued that the Odigba was introduced during the Ogiso period (c. 900–c. 1170 AD) by Ogiso Ere, along with other symbolically important Emwin Arhe, such as the Ada (ceremonial sword) and the Ẹbẹn (ceremonial sword), this seems unlikely, as coral was only introduced in the late 15th century through trade with Portuguese merchants.

The Ubanu'hi (infinity symbol) is a kind of guilloche or interlaced strapwork motif that can be angular or rounded. It was used by Edo artists in the decoration of many Emwin Arhe (royal treasures) and is ubiquitous in Benin royal arts. Ubanu'hi is a shortened form of “uba no Ọba ya de agbon ke ehimwin yi”, which means “the rope with which the Ọba ties the heaven and earth together” (pers. comm. Chief John Igbineweka Inneh n’Igbesawman, 2022). Similarly, Paula Ben-Amos Girshick (in Plankensteiner 2007, pp. 339, 341) described this as “Ọba n’iri agbon”, or the “rope of the world” pattern.

According to Ọbabanmu Ineh (in Blackmun 1984, p. 51), the use of this motif indicates that objects were carved by members of the Igbesanmwan. However, the motif is found on all types of Emwin Arhe (royal treasures), not only those made of ivory or wood. On the flanges of the Ama (relief plaques) alone, Kathryn Gunsch (2018, pp. 75–77) identified three different versions of the Ubanu'hi and, through her analysis of over 850 plaques, found that these different Ubanu'hi forms align with other characteristics, such as dimensions, the prevalence of ornamental motifs, and stylistic qualities. Together, these provide evidence, she argues, of different production groups among the plaque makers .

Kate Ezra (1992, pp. 209, 264) went on to argue that the use of these motifs indicates that certain objects were used in a “royal context” and were associated with “royal patronage”.

The Ukpẹ ọkhọkhọ is a distinctive hairstyle and coral-beaded headdress worn by the Iy’Ọba. The headdress includes a projection called the ‘ede Iy’Ọba’, which indicates that “her spiritual potentialities are closer in quality to those of her ruling son than they are to the powers of the nobles” (Aigbe Eson and Ihama Iguneronmwon in Blackmun 1991, p. 60). The Iy’Ọba’s hairstyle and headdress are meant to resemble ukpe-okhue, or the curved parrot’s beak (Kaplan 1993).

Barbara Blackmun (1991, p. 60) argued that “Benin art is multivocal, and any depiction of the Iye Ọba [sic] is a reference to Idia. Every woman who holds the office of lye Ọba plays the part of Idia, the ideal model of an Ọba’s mother.” Wearing the Ukpẹ ọkhọkhọ is one of the ways the Iy’Ọba plays the role of Idia.

Ehẹn is a general term used to describe various types of fish (Ọbazee 2025, p. 90; ). Although mudfish are one of the most common motifs in Benin art, other kinds of fish are also represented. According to Blackmun ( ), a greater variety of fish are represented on the Aken'ni Elao (carved tusks) than on other types of royal artefacts. According to Kathy Curnow ( ), fish appear on 70 Ama-Ẹrọnmwọn (bronze relief plaques), making them the most commonly represented animal. Despite their prevalence, the precise species of fish are not easy to identify due to their “generic renderings”, possibly indicating that artists did not always distinguish between specific varieties ( ). Fish are represented on the Ama-Ẹrọnmwọn both in profile and from above.