Ceremonial staff "rekade" ·  Bénin, Fon · ID: 3035775

Description

wood, crowned with a dog’s head with open teeth-revealing mouth, the eyes inset with red glass beads, completely stud with metal sheet, min. dam.,
“rekades” developed from war axes. The “rekade” symbolizes the authority of its owner. The messenger of the king carried the veiled staff on his shoulder, first uncovering it in presence of the receiver of the message, in order to seal the dispatch.

Littérature comparée

Robbins, Warren M. & Nancy Ingram Nooter, African Art in American Collections, o.O. 1989, p. 208