Idiophon "bird of prophecy", before 1914

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Description

brass, round staff, crowned by bird sculpture with spread wings, stained patina, small traces of corrosion;
this idiophon would have been paraded and struck by chiefs at the annual ceremony of “ugie oro” to commemorate the Benin kingdom’s military victories. The long, curved beak would have been beaten with a brass rod. All attempts to identify the bird, known simply as the “bird of Oro”, have failed, leading to the conclusion that it may be wholly mythical. In its beak it carries a small object, interpreted as a medicine bundle.

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Comparing literature

Barley, Nigel, The Art of Benin, London 2010, p. 88

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Publications

AHDRC: 0142268

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