Sàngó Staff (osé Sàngó)

Carved wooden staffs (also referred to as dancewands)—osé (or oshe) to the Yoruba—are carried by followers of the deity of thunder and lightning, Sàngó (or Shango), during annual festivals. At other times, the staffs decorate shrines dedicated to the god. The festivals and shrines are not only intended to placate the deity, but to harness his productive energy and power for collective good. Sàngó is known for both his wrath and his life-affirming qualities. Osé were typically carved from the Ayan tree (African Satinwood), which was considered sacred to Sàngó. This staff is carved in the form of a kneeling female figure wearing a skirt tied at her waste in a knot. She wears a tri-partite incised hairstyle. Above the female figure is a crescent plane upon which a bird eats a snake. Traces of white kaolin and indigo (a color highly valued by the Yoruba) can be found on areas of the staff. A kneeling woman—a devotee of Sàngó—is a typical subject for the opa (shaft) of an osé.