Identifikationsnummer
1048:05
Edo designations
English designations
Relief Plaque
Fragment
Categories
Palace Architecture & Ornamentation
Location
1 Adesogbe (Plymouth) Road, P.M.B. 1115, Benin City , Edo State
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Relief Plaque
Relief Plaque
Relief Plaque
Relief Plaque
Relief Plaque

Iconographies

5 annotations
hairstyles
Eto
hairstyles

Hairstyles are used to determine a person's status in the society, as chiefs, common folks, chief's wives and the wives of the Ọba all wear different hairstyles. We have Okuku, Ikpe~okhokho, Idu~akpata

1 annotation
Eto
Ẹkpoki
Cylindrical Boxes

Ẹkpoki are cylindrical boxes made by members of the Isekpokin (guild of leather workers) from leather and bark. In the late 19th century, some were also crafted from brass sheet with rich embossed ornamentation. Members of the Igun Ẹronmwon (guild of brass casters) might have created examples from cast brass, although only a single example of this kind is known today (inventory no. 212729). Ẹkpoki are used by the Ọba to present gifts to chiefs, while chiefs use leather Ẹkpoki to send kola nuts and other traditional items to one another (Inneh 2007, pp. 109–110). Ẹkpoki also feature in important rituals such as Iguẹ, during which the Ọba is ceremonially presented with an Ẹkpoki (Blackmun in Plankensteiner 2007, cat. no. 74, p. 328), as well as Ugie-Ewere, during which the Ọba is presented with an Ẹkpoki that symbolically contains a gift from the Ooni of Ife (Plankensteiner 2007, cat. no. 83, p. 336). This refers to an oral tradition that, at the coronation, the Ooni of Ife sent certain regalia. Gifts presented in Ẹkpoki could also have carried symbolic messages.

1 annotation
Ẹkpoki
Water fern
Ebe Amẹ
Water Fern

Ebe Amẹ refers to a wide variety of plants, particularly the leaves of the water fern or river leaf, found in riverine areas of southern Nigeria ( ). Artists from the Igun-Ẹrọnmwọn used these as a decorative motif in the background of most Ama-Ẹrọnmwọn (bronze relief plaques). The petals of the Ebe Amẹ, like the points of the ἀghàdàgháda (crossroads), represent the four cardinal directions: north, east, south, and west. The number four plays a foundational role in the Edo calendar, which is structured around four market days ( ).

1 annotation
Ebe Amẹ
Ibierugha and TBC
Attendant

Figures of young men and women, often depicted nude except for waist beads, occur frequently throughout the visual language of Emwin Arhe (royal artefacts), particularly on Ama-Ẹrọnmwọn (bronze relief plaques), Urhotọ (altar tableaux), and Aken'ni Elao (carved tusks). These figures are typically shown attending or supporting high-status individuals such as the Ọba, Iy’Ọba, or warrior chiefs. Their smaller scale visually reinforces their subordinate status.

Attendants may carry symbols of state, such as the Ada and Ẹbẹn (ceremonial swords), on behalf of the Ọba; Ẹzuzu (fans), used to cool the Ọba and Iy’Ọba and to waft away evil spirits; or Asa (shields), held over the heads of higher-status figures to protect them from malevolent forces (Kaplan 2007, p. 149). Other attendants are shown carrying offerings, sometimes contained in specialised vessels such as Ẹkpoki (cylindrical boxes) or Orhiẹvbẹ (kola-nut bowls).

Ibierugha (male attendant figures) are distinguished by a characteristic crest-like hairstyle with a braided lock of hair falling over the left ear (Völger 2007, cat. no. 9, p. 279). The Ọba was typically attended by young men, while the Iy’Ọba was attended by young women. Attendants of both genders were usually provided with clothing by the Ọba or Iy’Ọba once they reached maturity, at which point the royal household would also arrange suitable marriage partners for them (Ezra 1992, p. 81).

1 annotation
Ibierugha and TBC
Ikoro
Armcuff

Ikoro (armcuffs) are made from different materials using different techniques, including brass sheet, cast bronze, and ivory. They were crafted by different guilds depending on the material used: artists of the Igun-Ẹrọnmwọn cast them in brass or hammered and incised them from brass sheet, whereas artists of the Igbesamwan carved ivory Ikoro. Ikoro were made in different qualities, from rather simple examples with abstract geometric decoration to finely carved ivory examples with brass or copper inlays. Ikoro are worn in pairs on both forearms by chiefs and the Ọba during ceremonies and festivals. Figures depicted on the Emwin Arhe (royal treasures) are often shown wearing such pairs.

1 annotation
Ikoro

Provenance

6 events
Production
1504 (approximate) to 1550 (approximate)
The object was produced by Unknown member(s) of the Igun-Ẹrọnmwọn 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
1899 (approximate)
The object is known to have come into contact with John Lembcke, in Benin City.
Transfer
1899 (approximate)
The object was transferred from John Lembcke through L. Pagenstecher & Co. from Benin City to Hamburg.
Purchase
1905
The object was purchased by the MARKK Museum am Rothenbaum Kulturen und Künste der Welt from John Lembcke in Hamburg.
Restitution
December 16, 2022
The object was restituted by the MARKK Museum am Rothenbaum Kulturen und Künste der Welt to the Omo n'Oba n'Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Ọba of Benin & National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Nigeria through Carsten Brosda, S.E. Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, Abba Isa Tijani and Barbara Plankensteiner from Hamburg to Nigeria.

Institution data

MARKK Museum am Rothenbaum Kulturen und Künste der Welt
The data was transferred directly by the institution.
Last updated: 2022-06-10
Languages: german, english
Institution fieldValue
Identifikationsnummer
object id
1048:05
Titel
designation
Reliefbronzeplatte (Bruchstück), Schachtelträger
Materialien
material
ANORGANISCH/Metall/Gelbguß
Heutiges Staatsgebiet des Herstellungsortes
production place
Afrika/Westafrika/Nigeria/Benin-Reich
Provenienz/Name
prior source
provenance
Lembcke
Provenienz Objektitinerar Akteure Orte Daten
provenance
John Lembcke
Provenienz/Affiliation
provenance
L. Pagenstecher & Co.
Provenienz/Country
provenance
Germany
Provenienz/Date of Birth
provenance
19.03.1873
Provenienz/Date of Death
provenance
unknown
Provenienz/First Name
provenance
John
Provenienz/No
provenance
25
Provenienz/Place of Birth
provenance
Provenienz/Place of Death
provenance
unknown
Provenienz/Profession
provenance
Merchant
Provenienz/Role-Function/0
provenance
Consignor
Provenienz/Role-Function/1
provenance
Provenienz/Sex
provenance
male
Provenienz/Short Biography
provenance
John Lembcke (1873-?) originally came from Mecklenburg and was a Hamburg merchant. He worked as an agent for the trading company L. Pagenstecher & Co. in southern Nigeria. The company maintained several branches in Cameroon and Nigeria and traded raw rubber, among other things.Lembcke was probably employed at a branch of the firm in Warri, from where he went to nearby Benin City. There, he found objects which he eventually brought to Hamburg. Between 1899 and 1905, he sold 40 objects from the Kingdom of Benin to the museum.
Provenienz/Street
provenance
Hammmerlandstr. 75 II (Address Mrs. C. Lembcke, widow)
Provenienz/Town
provenance
Hamburg
Hersteller kulturhist. Herkunftsgesellschaft
ethnic attribution
--/Edo
Heutiger Aufbewahrungsort Sammlung
department and institution
Museum am Rothenbaum. Kulturen und Künste der Welt (MARKK)
Akquisitionsdatum
accession date
1905
Alte Inventarnummer
Inventurdatum
23.07.2009
Label Text (deu)
Reliefplatte (Bruchstück) mit Schachtelträger Unbekannte Werkstatt der Bronzegießergilde Igun Eronmwon / Königreich Benin, Nigeria, 16./17. Jh. / Gelbguss / Ankauf von John Lembcke, 1905, Inv. Nr. 1048:05 Der dargestellte Höfling trägt eine hohe Schachtel in der für Benin charakteristischen Spulenform. In solchen Behältnissen wurden bei zeremoniellen Auftritten Geschenke überbracht oder auch Nachrichten in Gestalt von symbolträchtigen Objekten weitergeleitet. EkpokinSchachteln bestehen aus zwei zylindrischen Teilen mit Deckplatte, die ineinandergesteckt werden. Sie wurden aus Leder, aus Messsingblech oder in Gelbguss gefertigt.
Label Text (eng)
Relief Plaque (Fragment): Courtier Carrying a Box Unidentified workshop of the Bronze Casters Guild Igun Eronmwon / Benin Kingdom, Nigeria, 16th/17th century / Brass / Acquired from John Lembcke, 1905, Inv. no. 1048:05 The courtier is carrying a tall box in the characteristic spool shape typical for Benin. Such containers were used to carry gifts during ceremonies or to convey messages in the form of symbolic objects they contained. Ekpokin boxes consist of two cylindrical parts with a cover plate, which are inserted into each other. They were made of leather, brass sheet or casted in brass.
Maße
Breite: 18,00 cm; Höhe: 21,00 cm; Tiefe: 7,00 cm
Sensitive Content

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