Lid of a box · Nigeria, Kingdom of Benin, Edo · ID: 3037878
Hans Himmelheber, Heidelberg, Germany (1934)
Boris Kegel-Konietzko, Hamburg, Germany
Ludwig Bretschneider, Munich, Germany
Description
ivory, of slender rectangular form with rounded corners, carved with two human figures, a snake and a leopard, collection number “Be5” at the back, min. dam., cracks through age (esp. at the back), small missing parts, base;
such objects were reserved for kings and high-ranking persons. They served for keeping kola nuts which were offered to visitors during ceremonies.
The leopard symbolizes the total harmony between two forces: menace and temperance, attributes an ideal leader (“oba”) should have. Like the “oba”, the leopard has the privilege of a leader, the “right to kill” so he stands above life.
The object Lid of a box with the object ID 3037878 was part of the auction 78th tribal art auction on October 18, 2014. The object with the lot number 276 achieved a sales price of EUR 3,300 with an asking price of EUR 2,500.
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Comparing literature
Arts primitifs, Collection Vérité, Paris 2006, p. 182, ill. 174 Duchateau, Armand, Benin, München, New York 1995, p. 101, ill. 105 (similar motif)