06785. Head with winged hood, high collar, on the plinth 2 leopards, 2 rams heads, 2 hands, 2 snakes. "Ancestral commemorative heads, .. have existed since earliest times as a way of honouring the deceased and beautifying ancestral shrines. .. The obas of the second dynasty introduced the brass commemorative head as their own distinctive shrine decoration. The significance of brass, at least in the modern Edo view, derives from its red colour and shiny surface, qualities which are considered both beautiful and frightening - a particularly appropriate symbol for the monarchy." (Ben Amos, 15) PUBL Kat. 1975: Abb. 5 LIT Ben Amos. 1980: the Art of Benin. London