Male twin figure (Ère Ìbejì) with tunic

Yorùbá artist

Brooklyn Museum photograph

Caption

Yorùbá artist. Male twin figure (Ère Ìbejì) with tunic, late 19th or early 20th century. Wood, pigment, cotton cloth, cowrie shells, glass beads, 10 3/4 x 6 3/4 x 4 1/4in. (27.3 x 17.1 x 10.8cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Drs. James J. Strain and Gladys Witt Strain, 2001.122.1a-b. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.2001.122.1a-b_overall.jpg)

Gallery

Not on view

Collection

Arts of Africa

Title

Male twin figure (Ère Ìbejì) with tunic

Date

late 19th or early 20th century

Geography

Place made: Ifon, Oyo, Nigeria

Medium

Wood, pigment, cotton cloth, cowrie shells, glass beads

Classification

Sculpture

Dimensions

10 3/4 x 6 3/4 x 4 1/4in. (27.3 x 17.1 x 10.8cm)

Credit Line

Gift of Drs. James J. Strain and Gladys Witt Strain

Accession Number

2001.122.1a-b

Rights

Creative Commons-BY

You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

Frequent Art Questions

  • What was the significance of cowrie shells in Yorùbá art?

    Cowrie shells represent wealth in Yorùbá art. At times they were even used as currency! They still retain connotations of value and prestige.

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