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This collection item does not have a name in the language of origin. If you know the name or have comments, use this form to contact the data-providing institution.
Depictions of pages with fans can be found on many relief panels depicting the king, dignitaries or high-ranking military officers. During ceremonies in which these people appeared in elaborate robes with heavy jewellery, fans primarily had a practical function, but they were also used for ritual purposes: Court dwarves prayed over a fan for the welfare of the king; medicine blown over a fan could weaken an opponent. Fans were usually made from dried skin. Fans made of brass were reserved for the king.
Weight: 1,7 kg Height: 40,8 cm Depth: 2,3 cm Width: 18,5 cm
Material/Technique
Brass, copper alloy
Current location
Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Inventory number
III C 8456
Provenance and sources
Production
where
Benin [kingdom]
Production
when
16th century
where
Nigeria
Collecting
who
Heinrich Bey - Collectors
Change of legal title: Acquisition
Description
16th cent, commissioned by Oba Esigie (r. 1517-1550) or his son Oba Orhogbua (r. 1550-1570), Royal Palace, Benin City; by inheritance to Oba Ovonramwen (ca. 1857-1914; r. 1888-97), Royal Palace, Benin City; 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.
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Onyeche Ijele (policeman)
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Altar bell
Ere Ibeji
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Twin figure
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Basketry
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Dignitaries
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Benin bronze, standing man with sword
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Amulet
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Bronze plate, man (head missing), crescent moons, damaged
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Hip or belt mask
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Slingshot
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