The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Crown (adéńlá)

Crown (adéńlá)

1900s
Diameter: 26.8 cm (10 9/16 in.); Overall: 105.9 cm (41 11/16 in.); Cone: 35.1 cm (13 13/16 in.); Fringe: 55.3 cm (21 3/4 in.)
Location: not on view

Description

The most important of all regalia, topped with the "royal bird" Okin, this headdress connects the king to Oduduwa, the mythical founder of the Yoruba. The veil of beaded strings masks the identity of the wearer and protects his subjects from the supernatural powers that radiate from his face. The crown also signifies the "inner head" of the king, the locus of an awesome life force called ase.
  • (Douglas Dawson, Chicago)
  • Petridis, Constantijn. South of the Sahara: selected works of African art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003. Reproduced: cat. 24, p. 78 - 79
    Cleveland Museum of Art. Museum Masters: 2016-17 Companion Guide. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2016. Mentioned and Reproduced: P. 14
  • {{cite web|title=Crown (adéńlá)|url=false|author=|year=1900s|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1995.22