Pair of ritual staffs "edan ogboni" ("edan oshugbo")
Nigeria, Yoruba
sold
EUR 7,000
Provenance
Louise Clark, US Peace Corps worker in Nigeria (coll. in situ, 1962)Scott Rodolitz, New York, USA
Mark Eglinton, New York, USA (No “4677”)
Size
H: 23,5 cm (male) / 25,5 cm (female)
H: 9.3 inch (male) / 10.0 inch (female)
Description
bronze, base
“Edan” embodies the authority of the “ogboni” society, according to whose principles the social order within the community is regulated. The “edan” staffs are used by cult members as a symbol of membership but they are also believed to be the god “Edan” in physical form.
Thus a messenger carries the “edan”, strikes his chest and forehead, and the recipient does the same to acknowledge the authority of “ogboni”.