Divination head for "ifa", "olori ikin" ·  Nigeria, Yoruba · ID: 3050957

Description

bone,

“Ifa” priests use sixteen sacred palm nuts for their divinations. Many of them have a seventeenth nut called “olori(n) ikin” (“chief of the palm nuts”). It is often replaced by such a small human head made of bone (or ivory).

Usually it is believed that the heads represent “eshu’”, but they are more likely to allude to “orunmila”, the supreme deity of the “ifa” oracle.

The object Divination head for “ifa”, “olori ikin” with the object ID 3050957 was part of the auction Collectors’ Items Sale on September 24, 2025, lot number 225 at that time and is currently available for EUR 400 in Open sale.

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