Ritual staff "ogboni" ·  Nigeria, Yoruba · ID: 3040578

Description

brass, cast around iron staff, crowned by a bearded face, “ogboni” sign in shape of two opposed crescents on the forehead, incised scarification marks, small bird sculpture, patina, base;
the “oshugbo” society, called “ogboni” in some areas, worships Mother Earth, conducts important sacred, judicial matters in utmost secrecy, and has its own distinctive visual forms and iconography.