unknown Master of IFE
Nigeria
Bronze, H 30 cm / 11.8 in.
Prov.: Collection Karl William Heiss, coll. 2010
This bronze 'Oni-head' displays the perfect mastery of the casting technique and the portrait-like expressiveness of the Ife works of art. Ife is to this day the residence of the 'Oni', the priestly head of the Yoruba religion, and the center of the world for the Yoruba.
The fine facial scarification evidence the membership to one of the important clans of the Ife kingdom.