The relationship between these two groups and the much earlier Ife culture is also uncertain. For instance, the Ife are largely believed to be ancestral to later art styles, so their distinctive striped faces (denoting scarification) are technically archaic. However, radiometric dating of (unstriped) Yoruba pieces demonstrate that they significantly precede some notable Ife works, while Benin uses both styles in their figures and plaques. The technology of bronze and copper smelting, ironworking and sculpting in a range of materials that included ivory was extremely refined and effective; indeed, smelting, forging and cire perdue (lost wax) metalworking methods exceeded any seen in Europe until the 19th century. The complexity of the method – carving the item in wax then casting it in metal in a clay mould – was exacerbated by the detail and structural parameters of the figures.

The current figure is a good example of the technique, and is extremely unusual in terms of construction as well as detailing. Depicting a kneeling woman with outstretched hands, she is nursing a crossed pair of twins who are supporting themselves with their feet on her hands (it should be noted that prevalence of twins in the Yoruba is the highest in the world, hence the development of the Ibeji cult). The mother is well nourished, perhaps pregnant, and is curvaceous both frontally and in rear view. Her breasts are elongated and finely marked with scars, as is her stomach, and she is naked except for a necklace of plain beads. Her head is extraordinary. Shaped in a generally broad oval, her face is relatively flat with curved cheeks, a broad nose and small earrings set in posterolaterally placed ears. The eyes are large, slanted and almond-shaped, with defined rims and a leonine expression heightened by the crested line dividing the eye in two. The top of the head is very unusually styled. The whole of the head is covered with small spikes about ¼ of an inch long, the apex of the head being marked with a large eminence, similarly covered with spikes. While it appears to be a hat, depicting hair in this manner may be a personal mannerism of the sculptor. Her nose is marked with a double parallel scar running down from frontal to tip, lending a sectorial effect. The lips, which are broad, parted and prominent, are the origin for an extraordinary effect – four long, curved whiskers on each side that curve up the cheeks almost to the ear. Both of her children are similarly affected.