This archaic-looking figure represents one of
Africa’s most enduring and charming sculptural
traditions. It was carved by a diviner of the
Yoruba group, at the request of a woman who
had lost one of her twins. In fear of losing the
other to malevolent spirits, she would
commission this piece to fool them into believing
that the dead twin was still alive, and that their
divided spirit need not be taken away. This
particular piece is very much in the traditional
mould, demonstrating highly emphasized female
characteristics (they were always made to match
the sex of the dead child) and an elongated
format. The face is very austere, with classic
semi-circular eyes, an inverted “T” nose and
parted, parallel lips. The crested coiffure is
detailed for the 1/3 nearest to the head and is
plain thereafter; it is stained blue from the
application of Reckitts blue – a laundry dye
product that was used for this purpose during
the colonial period (previously plant dyes were
used). The face bears the triple scars that denote
Yoruba artworks. The hands are elongated, and
are attached to the body at the hip. The trunk
and limbs are elongated and columnar; their lack
of detail focuses attention upon the head and
also upon the rest of the figures’ graceful use of
line. In rear view the construction is greatly
simplified, with very protuberant buttocks and a
clearer view of the figures’ clenched fists. The
figure is standing on an integral round base; the
contact point between the figure and the base is
almost obscured by the deposition of numerous
libations that have also accumulated in all the
concave sections of the sculpture. The figure has
been adorned with a two bead necklaces (one
blue and one white and blue), an amber-
coloured beaded waistband and a bracelet of
amber/green beads.
The Yoruba peoples of Nigeria have what is
probably the longest extant artistic tradition in
Africa. The nation state is comprised of
numerous subsections that were joined
historically by the rise and collapse of the Ife
(12th to 15th centuries) and Benin (13th to 19th
centuries) polities. Each of the sub-kingdoms –
including Oyo, Ijebu and smaller units towards
the west – had their heyday, and are loosely
united through language and culture, although
they still retain a measure of independence in
terms of their artistic traditions. It is extremely
hard to summarise the nature of Yoruba society
given the large area they cover and the inevitable
variability of their customs.
The Yoruba – being a large, complex society – is
sedentary, agriculturist and hierarchical. They are
ruled by hereditary kings known as Obas, and
their access to the supernatural world is
supervised by a very complex arrangement of
priests (i.e. Olowa) and spiritual intermediaries.
Their cosmology is arranged in terms of the
tangible realm of the living (aye) and the invisible
realm of the spirits and the hereafter (orun).
Their relationship is sometimes described as
being that of a gourd with tightly-interlocking
upper and lower halves, or as a divination board
with a raised rim and a depressed centre. The
creator of the world is Olodumare (or Odumare,
Olorun, Eleda or Eleemi, depending on the area),
who is the source of all ase – life force. Orun is
populated by all manner of spirits (iwin, ajogun,
egbe and oro), gods (orisa) and ancestors (ara
orun), all of whom influence the living. They can
all be reached, appealed to or appeased through
human intermediaries such as the babalawo
(diviner). Most Yoruban artistic heritage is
designed to thwart evil spirits, and to placate or
honour those that bring good fortune to the
populace.
Yoruba populations have the world’s highest
prevalence of twinning (45/1000 live births –
compared to 8/1000 in the US), and this fact has
been woven into their mythology, culture and art.
In Yoruba culture, twins are promulgated by
Shango, who is also the god of Thunder. Twins
are thus regarded as auspicious – fertility is,
after all, a major factor in determining the
viability of any population. However, the
mortality rate of twins is very high
(approximately 50%), and magico-religious
measures have been taken to avert this
misfortune. According to Yoruba convention,
every person has a spirit or soul, which is shared
between a pair of twins. If one should die, the
babalawo (diviner) will carve a wooden figure of
the same sex as the deceased child, which the
parents must take care of as if it were alive. This
figure is known as an ere ibeji. The protector of
twins – a spirit (orisha) named Ibeji – will then
safeguard the remaining child until adulthood.
Until this point, the mother must wash, dress,
feed and anoint the wooden figure. The
appearance of the figures depends entirely upon
the skill of the carver, as only the sex of the
individual is specifically determined. The specific
social history of the area, and its contacts with
other areas or cultures, does determine the final
appearance of the figures. For example, the hair
of some individuals is rubbed with indigo dye,
and the bodies with red camwood powder, while
tribe-specific scarifications enable one to
determine the origin of the figure within the
Yoruba polity. Equally, most ibeji are naked, but
socially elevated families often wish to manifest
their wealth through dressing the figure in
ornate clothing or jewellery.
The current piece evidently commemorates the
dead girl of a prosperous family. As well as being
well-carved, the piece has had attention lavished
upon it in the form of baths, libations and much
more, and has even been dressed in finery, all to
avoid the demise of her twin. This is a beautiful
yet poignant piece of African art.
