Female pair of twin figures "ere ibeji" ·  Nigeria, Yoruba, Abeokuta · ID: 3035488

Description

wood, brown patina, each figure with three strings of coconut discs and three strings of glass beads, fine carving, clear cut regular facial features, elaborate disc-shaped coiffures with pierced crest, richly provided with skin scarification marks (face, breast), nail heads in the eyes (apart from one) preserved, drilled earholes, slightly dam., (nostril, left shoulder of one of the figures);
Yoruba peoples are well-known to have a high birth rate of twins. If one or both of them died, such a figure is carved in order to keep them alive for their family. They are used to be kept standing on a special twins altar in the mothers sleeping room and they are regularly washed, fed and rubbed in with camwood powder (“osun”). If family members do not stick to those rituals, this may cause disaster, disease or infertility. The twins do have the power to protect those who honour them, but they might as well punish those who neglect them.

The object Female pair of twin figures “ere ibeji” with the object ID 3035488 was last part of the auction 74th tribal art auction at September 7, 2013 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 247 achieved a sales price of EUR 1,600.

You can find more Figures and other popular object types on our related topic pages. You may also be interested in our page on African art.

Comparing literature

Stoll, Gert, Ibeji, Zwillingfiguren der Yoruba, München 1980, p. 113, ill. 7