<p>This brass head was commissioned by a newly crowned king for an altar commemorating a previous ruler, most likely the king’s father. Its shape imitates the regal coral-beaded collar and cap and served as the pedestal for a carved elephant tusk, the white color of which signaled the king’s divine and sacred nature. In Benin thought, the head is an important symbol of authority and power. Through this portrait a king channeled his deified ancestors to vitalize and protect his reign.</p>
provenance_textprovenance Oba Ovonrramwen, (r. 1888-97, died 1914), Benin City, Kingdom of Benin, before 1897; possibly taken during the British military raid. Dr. Hans Meyer (died 1929), Leipzig, Germany, from 1900 [Receipt from Jacques Seligmann and Company in curatorial file]; by descent to Mrs. Hans Meyer, 1929; sold to Jacques Seligmann and Company, New York, N.Y., 1933; sold to Mrs. George W. Crawford (née Annie Laurie; married Russell B. Aitken, 1957; died 1984), 1940; by descent to Russell B. Aitkens, 1984; sold, Christie’s, New York, April 3, 2003, sale 1278 (The Russell B. Aitken Collection of African, American Indian, and Oceanic Art), lot 62, to the Art Institute.
exhibition_historyexhibition history Museum fur Volkerkunde, Vienna (organizer), BENIN–Kings and Rituals: Court Arts from Nigeria, May 9–September 3, 2007, cat.; traveled to Musee du quai Branly, Paris, October 2, 2007–January 6, 2008, Ethnologisches Museum-Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, February 7–May 25, 2008, Art Institute of Chicago, July 10-September 21, 2008, cat. (Chicago only).