Altar of the hand | Photographer: Eva Ritz
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Altar of the hand
The tendencies towards individualisation in Beninese art in the 18th and 19th centuries can be seen in the emergence of a new type of altar, the altar of the hand. While altars with memorial heads serve to honour the ancestors and the power they inherited, the veneration of the hand on the new altars stands for the individual abilities and achievements of the person. Altars of the king, but also those of dignitaries, show the clenched hand with the thumb outstretched.
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Data Provider
Ethnologisches Museum
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Cataloguing data
Object type
Sculpture
Dimensions
Gewicht: b) 8,2 kg
Höhe x Breite x Tiefe: a) 13,5 x 60 x 33 cm
Höhe x Breite x Tiefe: b) 39 x 26,5 x 26,5 cm
Gewicht: 17,35 kg (Gesamtgewicht)
Höhe x Breite x Tiefe: 49 x 60 x 33 cm (Gesamtmaß)
Gewicht: a) 9,15 kg
Höhe x Breite x Tiefe: a) 13,5 x 60 x 33 cm
Höhe x Breite x Tiefe: b) 39 x 26,5 x 26,5 cm
Gewicht: 17,35 kg (Gesamtgewicht)
Höhe x Breite x Tiefe: 49 x 60 x 33 cm (Gesamtmaß)
Gewicht: a) 9,15 kg
Material/Technique
Wood
Current location
Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Inventory number
III C 8758 a,b
Provenance and sources
where
Benin [kingdom]
when
19th century
where
Nigeria [Land]
Benin [Königreich]
who
William Downing Webster (1868-05-11 - 1913-01-14) - Collectors
Description
Commissioned in the Kingdom of Benin in the 19th century; ownership before 1897 currently unknown; probably looted in connection with the British conquest of Benin, 1897; in unknown possession between Feb. 1897 and 1899; acquired by the Museum of Ethnology from William D. Webster, 1899.
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The name of this item is missing in its original language. If you know the name or have any comments, please use the form to get in touch with the institution that provided the data.
The name of this item is missing in its original language. If you know the name or have any comments, please use the form to get in touch with the institution that provided the data.
The name of this item is missing in its original language. If you know the name or have any comments, please use the form to get in touch with the institution that provided the data.
The name of this item is missing in its original language. If you know the name or have any comments, please use the form to get in touch with the institution that provided the data.
The name of this item is missing in its original language. If you know the name or have any comments, please use the form to get in touch with the institution that provided the data.
The name of this item is missing in its original language. If you know the name or have any comments, please use the form to get in touch with the institution that provided the data.
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