Large carved elephant tusk with multiple figures in low relief. Figures carved on the tusk include divine representations of a deceased king such as the fish and a man with two crocodiles issuing from his head. In addition men holding spears, a European with a crossbow, an ibis with a catfish in its bill, etc. are shown.
Until 1897, Benin Kingdom; 1897, reportedly taken from the Royal Palace during the British military raid and occupation of Benin City by an unidentified British agent; between 1897 and 1921, provenance not yet documented; before 1921, reportedly collection of Lieutenant-Colonel Maximilian John de Bathe; by 1921, acquired by William O. Oldman, London; 1921, purchased from William O. Oldman by the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology; 1939, transferred from the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology to the Brooklyn Museum, by exchange.
Blackmun, Barabara W. The Iconography of Carved Altar Tusks from Benin. Ph.D. dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles. Ann Arbor: University Microfilms, 1984.Hall, H. U. 1922. "Great Benin Royal Altar". The Museum Journal, University of Pennsylvania XIII, No.2 (June), pp. 105-168. Actual Citation: Page 107/Fig. 34/Plate: 122. The Museum Journal, University of Pennsylvania VIII, no. 4 (1922?). [No author or title given on original catalogue card, perhaps same as above?]