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ekpokin

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During a series of ceremonies in the palace, the king was presented with gifts in such containers by dignitaries. They were made of tree bark and covered with fur. In another relief panel in this exhibition, the pattern of the container shows that it was made of leopard skin. The ẹkpokin container made of brass is the only one of its kind. Due to the material, it probably comes from royal property. It could be an emblematic object that was not made for immediate use but, like many comparable objects made of brass (fruit, heads of sacrificial animals), symbolised the ceremonies associated with them.

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Ethnologisches Museum Show original at data provider

Cataloguing data

Object type
Container
Dimensions
Height: 13 cm
Width: 20 cm
Depth: 20 cm
Height: 13 cm
Width: 21,7 cm
Depth: 21,5 cm
Weight: 1,75 kg
Weight: 3,05 kg
Weight: 1,35 kg
Height: 13,5 cm
Depth: 21,5 cm
Width: 21,7 cm
Material/Technique
Brass, copper alloy
Current location
Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Inventory number
III C 8500 a,b

Provenance and sources

  • Production
    where
    Benin [kingdom]
  • Production
    when
    18th century-19th century.
    where
    Nigeria
    Benin
  • Collecting
    who
    Heinrich Bey - Collectors
  • Change of legal title:
    Acquisition
    Description
    18th century - 19th century, commissioned by the Igun Eronmwon or guild of brass casters in the Kingdom of Benin; ownership before 1897 currently unknown; probably looted in connection with the British conquest of Benin, 1897; in unknown possession after the conquest of the Kingdom of Benin; collected on behalf of the firm Bey & Co., between 1897 and 1898 in the territory of later colonial Nigeria; sold to the Königliches Museum für Völkerkunde in Berlin, 1899.
  • Assignment to a curated holding:
    Africa

Information about the record

Legal status metadata
CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED
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