The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 25, 2024
Pair of Ritual Staffs (ẹdan Ògbóni)
1900s
Overall: 8.9 cm (3 1/2 in.)
Gift of Katherine C. White 1973.220
Location: not on view
Did You Know?
Imagine how this would look when its owner wore it; the chain would go around the back of their neck and the figures would rest on their chest.Description
The chain connecting these two figures allows them to be worn in public by a member of the Ògbóni or Òṣùgbó association as authority emblems. The male on the right gives the association’s typical salute by clasping his left fist on the right one, while the female on the left holds her breasts as a sign of welcome and generosity. The use of copper alloy and iron expresses Ògbóni/Òṣùgbó's concerns with longevity and durability. Long iron spikes would have originally protruded from each figure's base.- CMA 1974: "Year in Review 1973," CMA Bulletin LXI (Feb., 1974), p. 73, no. 17.Year in Review: 1973. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 30-March 17, 1974).CMA 1968: "African Tribal Images: The Katherine White Reswick Collection," cat. no. 139, repr.
- {{cite web|title=Pair of Ritual Staffs (ẹdan Ògbóni)|url=false|author=|year=1900s|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1973.220