Benin Commemorative Head Representing a Queen Mother
Nigeria
A commemorative head constructed along a vertical axis, the form organised through a contained facial volume surmounted by an elongated pointed coiffure articulated by layered geometric registers.
Description
Elongated eyes are positioned beneath projecting brows above a closed mouth and articulated jawline. Incised scarification marks are set above each eye, with further incised marks across the upper cheeks. Coiled loop ornaments are set at either side of the coiffure, above the ears, and a beaded band frames the brow. The neck is rendered as a tightly ribbed cylindrical collar, visually distinct from the facial plane. The coiffure rises as a tall tapering cone, its textured surface set with star-form rosettes and small rectangular tabs and bound by diagonal cross-strapping of cord-form relief, with knotted loops at the intersections. A segmented vertical band ascends the front to a twisted cord-form finial, bound at its base by a wrapped band. Relief patterning remains continuous across the full circumference.
Surface is compact and stable. Oxidation is retained within recessed fields and relief intervals; exposure at projecting edges and perimeter transitions.
Context
Among the Benin, commemorative heads functioned within courtly and ancestral altar contexts associated with royal lineage and memorial practice.
Provenance
From the Felice Maffei Collection, acquired in Nigeria, 1984.
Details
- Title
- Benin Commemorative Head Representing a Queen Mother
- Culture
- Benin
- Origin
- Nigeria
- Date
- 20th century
- Dimensions
- H 52 cm (20.5 in) · W 20 cm (7.9 in) · D 24 cm (9.4 in)
- Medium
- Cast bronze
- Provenance
- From the Felice Maffei Collection, acquired in Nigeria, 1984.
- Condition
- Stable oxidation; recessed deposits retained; relief definition preserved.
