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Pair of Twin Memorial Figures (àwon ere Ibéjì)

Pair of Twin Memorial Figures (àwon ere Ibéjì)

Unknown

With the highest twin birthrate in the world, Yorùbá people regard twins (Ibéjì) as sacred. If one or both departed prematurely, the parents commissioned a carved memorial figure (ere Ibéjì) to demonstrate their love and devotion for a lost child. The figures were adorned with lavish jewelry and garments made of beads and shells, and were painted, bathed, oiled, fed, sung to, and danced with. They are from the Ìbàràpá region of Nigeria, near the town of Èrúwà.
Artist
Unknown (Nigerian, Yorùbá People)
Title
Pair of Twin Memorial Figures (àwon ere Ibéjì)
Date
ca. 1940
Medium
Wood and copper
Dimensions
1) 10 3/16 x 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 in.; 2) 10 1/8 x 3 3/8 x 3 1/2 in. Overall
Credit
J. David and Laura Seefried Horsfall Endowment Fund purchase
Accession No.
1991.30.1-2
Classification
Sculpture
Geography
Nigeria

Related

between 1989 and 1991, sold by Tony Okoroafor (Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria) to dealer David A. Ackely (Ypsilanti, MI); 1991, sold by David A. Ackely (Ypsilanti, MI) to the Elvehjem Museum of Art [now called the Chazen Museum of Art]

  • Exhibition gallery guide, "Revealing Forms: African Art from the Elvehjem Collection." 2002.
  • Drewal, Henry John. "African Art at the Elvehjem." Bulletin/Biennial Report 2001-2003. Elvehjem Museum of Art (2003): 16-36. pp. 16-36
  • Elvehjem Museum of Art. "Artscene." Vol. 7, No. 4, Sept/Oct 1991.

  • Revealing Forms: African Art from the Collection: Elvehjem Museum of Art, 4/20/2002–6/16/2002

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