Ifá Divination Container (Agere Ifá)
Yoruba Artist, Ketu, Nigeria
Details
Title
Ifá Divination Container (Agere Ifá)
Artist/Maker
Yoruba Artist, Ketu, Nigeria
Date
Late nineteenth–early twentieth
Medium
Wood and pigment
Dimensions
7 1/2 x 7 1/4 x 7 1/4 inches
Credit
Gift of Bernard and Patricia Wagner
Accession #
2008.281
This divination bowl was used for storing the sacred palm nuts used for divination. Its center of attention is a horseman flanked by a warrior holding a sword and a woman with a child on her back. Behind the warrior is a dùndún drummer. Following the woman is another warrior holding a gun and carrying a keg of alcohol or gunpowder. The container’s imagery evokes a popular prayer to Òrúnmìlà: Ifa, let me ride horseback in triumph. I am Boroye, the first prince of Ado. Ifa, let me ride horseback in triumph.