Ifá divination vessel (àgéré Ifá)
Unknown Artist
mid- late 1800s
Medium
Wood and colorant
Dimensions
31.7 × 15.7 × 15.9 cm
Classification
Sculpture
Department
African Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund
Accession Number
1994.200
About this artwork
The mother figure of this vessel from the Southern Ekiti region represents a devotee who kneels before the gods. The vessel once held the 16 sacred palm nuts essential to divination rituals. The object was used by a priest as a medium through which to communicate with the god of fate, Orunmila, in order to gain insight into an individual’s destiny or to understand the cause of misfortune.