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Altar group with prisoner

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The structure of this group of figures is related to the royal altarpieces. However, it does not depict a king, but a kneeling person who is guarded by two members of the Ewua guild - recognisable by the round hat with the cross - and a small Portuguese man. It could be a depiction of Attah of Idah, who was defeated by King Esigie and forced into Christian baptism in a legendary campaign at the beginning of the 16th century. The iron chain holding the kneeling man, the small dog as a sacrificial animal and the severed heads link this group to Ogun, the god of war and iron. The reference to Esigie in this group of figures, which was certainly not cast until the 18th or 19th century, fits into the context of the renaissance of these powerful kings of Benin's early period by the kings of the 18th century.

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Cataloguing data

Object type
Plastic
Dimensions
Weight: 20,4 kg
Height: 38 cm
Width: 35 cm
Depth: 23 cm
Material/Technique
Brass, Iron, iron, copper alloy
Current location
Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Inventory number
III C 8168

Provenance and sources

  • Production
    where
    Benin [kingdom]
  • Production
    when
    18th century-19th century.
    where
    Nigeria
  • Collecting
    who
    Eduard Schmidt - Collectors
  • Change of legal title:
    Acquisition
    Description
    18th century - 19th century, commissioned work of the Igun Eronmwon or Guild of Brass Casters in the Kingdom of Benin; probably looted in connection with the British conquest of Benin, 1897; in unknown possession after the conquest of the Kingdom of Benin; collected by Consul Eduard Schmidt, employee of the Woermann line, between 1897 and 1898 in the territory of later colonial Nigeria; sold to the Königliches Museum für Völkerkunde in Berlin, 1898.
  • Assignment to a curated holding:
    Africa

Information about the record

Legal status metadata
CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED
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