During the British expeditionto Benin City (Edo) in 1897 objects made of brass, bronze, ivory, coral, and wood were looted by British soldiers from the royal palace, its storerooms, and compounds. Some of these objects were sold or exchanged in West Africa. However, many were brought to the UK where they were retained by soldiers of the expeditionand subsequently inherited by thier families; put up for auction; or donated, lent, or sold to museums. See Collection File: Af1897,-.498-563.
Plankensteiner 2007: These ivory and wood containers (orievbee) are prestige objects created for the presentation of kola nuts (the fruit of a tropical rain forest tree in the Malvaceaae family). In traditional practice, householders welcome guests by offering them kola nuts, a symbol of peace, order and civilisation. The kola nuts are broken into segments and distributed according to relative rank followed by a prayer blessing those present. While it is permissable to offer kola nuts by hand or on a china plate, chiefs and wealthy men can purchase elaborately decorated containers from the carvers' guild. Orievbee are usually carved from wood...[and] covered with the ubiquitous guilloche designs (oba n'iri agbon, 'the rope of the world pattern'), some of the wooden ones are further enhanced by strips of brass sheet (a similar one is illustrated in Pitt Rivers 1977, pl. XLIV). Kola nut containers are found in a number of different shapes - rectangular, circular, and, in cases such as this, having the form of an animal's head. The animal represented has been variously identified as an antelope or a cow - both creatures that are considered to combine physical beauty (shapely horns, smooth attractive skin, and easy gait) with a lack of aggressiveness towards humans. A pair of hands grasp the horns in a gesture that symbolizes the right of humans to sacrifice antelopes and cows with impunity. This type of carving appears to have a long history in Benin. There are several 16th-17th century brass plaques which depict various types of court officials holding orievbee in the shape of a horned animal. Some officials are solitary figures (Read and Dalton 1899: pl. XXVIII 3 and 4) while others are part of the entourage of a chief (Ezra 1992: 116, pl.36 & pl.42). According to Dark (1960:32) this kind of kola nut box was introduced by the great 15th century king Oba Ewuare.
Exhibited: 1970-1973, London, Museum of Mankind, Divine Kingship in Africa 2007 May-Sept, Vienna, Museum für Völkerkunde, Benin. Kings and Rituals: Court Arts from Nigeria 2007-2008 Oct-Jan, Paris, Musée du quai Branly, Benin. Kings and Rituals: Court Arts from Nigeria 2008 Feb-May, Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Ethnologisches Museum, Benin. Kings and Rituals: Court Arts from Nigeria