The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Ancestral Altar Tusk

Ancestral Altar Tusk

c. 1820

Did You Know?

Originally, this carved tusk was placed on an ancestral altar as part of an ensemble of objects made to memorialize a deceased Ọba (ruler).

Description

Ọba Ọsẹmwẹdẹ commissioned the carving of this tusk to connect with his ancestors and symbolize his strength. It is covered with royal figures wearing elaborate regalia and scenes of power, ritual, and violence. While Benin royal symbols may look similar across centuries, their meanings can shift. Ọsẹmwẹdẹ’s reign was prosperous due to trade with the Dutch; however, 16th-century Portuguese men are carved on the lower tusk. By the 1800s they represented any European traders. This tusk’s surface likely became worn and cracked from frequent washing, bleaching, and the applying of a white clay (orhue) linked to peace, purity, and prosperity.
  • 1820s
    Commissioned by Ọba Ọsẹmwẹdẹ [r. 1815–50] from the Igbesanmwan
    after 1850
    Ọba Ọsẹmwẹdẹ [r. 1815–50], Royal Palace, Benin City, by descent to Ovọnramwẹn (Ovọnramwẹn Nogbaisi [c. 1857–1914, r. 1888–97]
    1897
    Brought to England (or Europe) following the Siege of Benin
    by at least 1961–1968
    Katherine (Merkel) White Reswick [1929-1980], Gates Mills, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1968–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Fagg, William. African Tribal Images; the Katherine White Reswick Collection. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1968. Reproduced: cat. No. 144
    Lee, Sherman E. "The Year in Review for 1968." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 56, no. 1 (1969): 3-50. Reproduced: p. 43; mentioned: p. 46, no. 56 www.jstor.org
    Blackmun, Barbara Winston. 1994. "History and Statecraft on a Tusk from Old Benin". The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art. 81 (4): 87-115. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 88, fig. 2 www-jstor-org.ingallslibrary.idm.oclc.org
    Young-Sanchez, Margaret, "A Royal Plaque", Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine. Vol. 39 no. 07, September 1999 Mentioned & reproduced: p. 8-9 archive.org
    Petridis, Constantijn. South of the Sahara: selected works of African art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003. Reproduced: cat. 26, p. 82 - 83
    Windmuller-Luna, Kristen. “Art from the Benin Kingdom.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 61, no. 1 (Winter 2021): 34-35. Reproduced: P. 34-35; Mentioned: P. 34.
    Digital Benin, Markk Museum Am Rothenbaum Kulturen und Kunste der Welt, (Last Updated: 2021-02-13) ID 143898 digitalbenin.org
  • Year in Review: 1968. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 29-March 9, 1969).
    African Tribal Images: The Katherine White Reswick Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (July 10 – September 1, 1968)
  • {{cite web|title=Ancestral Altar Tusk|url=false|author=|year=c. 1820|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1968.284