Af,A154.78

EPF11279

9466 (William Webster number)~9743-6 (William Webster numbers)

King & Waterfield 2006: ~Webster 1907: Cat.24, figs.40-44

Benin Bronzes and Ivories (Series)

photographic print (black and white)~album

paper

photographic process

Photograph (black and white); mounted on card, part of a bound album. View of five eben swords. Photographic process.

Height: 24.00 cm (page)~Width: 27.40 cm (page)

Previous owner/ex-collection: William Downing Webster

1898-1899 (circa)

Photographed in: London

Made by: Edo

Associated with: Benin City

Inscription:~ Inscription details: inscription (front of mount; below photograph) in English~ Inscription quoted: 40. Iron ceremonial sword. £20.0.0. 42. Iron ceremonial sword. with bronze handle and brass plates on blade. £40.0.0. Leipzig Museum. 41. Iron ceremonial sword. £2.10.0. 43. Iron ceremonial sword. "2.10.0. Edinburgh Museum. 44. Iron ceremonial sword. £2.10.0. ~ Inscription note: Handwritten in black ink. Description of objects from the Kingdom of Benin, with indicative purchase prices and names of some vendors.

This album contains photographs of objects from the Kingdom of Benin, Nigeria sold by the London-based dealer, William Downing Webster. Many of the photographs are annotated with information relating to the vendor/s and some include purchase prices. It is likely that the photographic series was compiled by Webster in the early 1900s. The object depicted in this photograph was sold by William Webster as follows: 40. unknown. 41. to the Field Museum, Chicago in 1905. Accession number: 89831. 42. to Hans Meyer by 1913. Possibly on loan to Leipzig Museum. By descent to Elisabeth Meyer from 1929-1946. By descent to Meyer family until 2001. Purchased by the State Ethnographic Collections of Saxony - GRASSI Museum für Völkerkunde Leipzig in 2001. Accession number: MAf 34551. 43. to National Museums Scotland, Edinburgh in 1900. Accession number: A.1900.141. 44. unknown.

https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/EA_Af-A154-78