West Africa, Nigeria, Yoruba people, early 20th century CE. A fine example of a Yoruba iron staff used in ritual with long, thin bells on its lower part and capped by a bird finial atop a thin round disk. Below the disk is an upside-down group of four bells with a tightly coiled bar of iron below them. The bird has a thin, arched neck and a large body, like a form of guinea fowl or pheasant. Rather than being a solid piece, the bird's body is formed of long, bent strips of iron with a flat sheet on one side forming a wing. Size: 4.7" W x 48.5" H (11.9 cm x 123.2 cm)

Birds have a special significance to the Yoruba, representing the triumph of good over evil, and staffs of this kind are called Osun babalawo.

See a similar example at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1991.375.4).

Provenance: Adeon Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, USA, acquired prior to 1970

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#119087

Iron patina over surface. Small cracks on bird's neck; one bell below the bird seems to be missing but the loss is very old if so.