A YORUBA CARVED WOOD MALE TWIN IBEJI FIGURE, NIGERIA, LATE 19TH/EARLY 20TH CENTURY, modeled in a standing position with bulging eyes centering iron nail head decoration beneath incised eyelash details above vertical line scarification, flanked by crescent shaped ears and surmounted by a crested headdress with multiple line carving, over a short neck and tapering torso within curved arms suspending glass bead bracelets, above stylized male genitalia on short stocky legs and flat feet raised on an oval base with crosshatched decoration, traces of blue pigment and earthen powder substance in areas throughout. The Yoruba have one of the highest number of twin births in the world, four times higher than in Europe. Ibeji are known to the Yoruba as two people who share one soul. If one of the human twins dies, whether as a child or an adult, the surviving human twin is considered to have little hope of living with only half a soul. Further, the deceased's soul must have a place to reside. When a matched pair of twins is made, it is an indication that both have died. "Ultimately, the surface of an Ibeji measures the object's spiritual value to the caregiver. The response of the Yoruba mothers and caregivers is primarily personal and spiritual, not aesthetic. Even an Ibeji carved by a mediocre artisan can develop a surface reflecting great efficacy to the believer. The wood is worked, fed, oiled, and clothed not so much to fulfill an aesthetic ideal but to fulfill a human need "....taken from 'Ibeji Surface Analysis' by Charles Bordogna, in 'Surfaces' ed. Kahan, Page, Imperato, 2009 by Indiana Univ. Press. Height: 11 1/2"