Item Specifics:

Culture: Yoruba (Abeokuta / Ogbomosho Regional Influences)

Country/Region of Origin: Nigeria

Material: Hand-Carved Hardwood, Heavy Camwood Paste (Osun), Indigo Pigment

Object Type: Authentic Shrine-Used Ere Ibeji Figure (Single)

Provenance: From a private estate collection; retains historical mounting adhesive on base.

Item Description:

Museum-Quality Antique Yoruba Ere Ibeji Single Figure – Heavy Altar-Caked Osun Patina & Fine Carving

This is an exceptional, authentic antique shrine-used Ere Ibeji single figure from the Yoruba people of Nigeria. This piece displays a wonderful stylistic cross-influence, combining a powerful, classic Abeokuta-style face with the robust, stocky, bowed-leg posture typical of regional master workshops.

This figure boasts a magnificent, highly complex two-tone surface, providing undeniable physical proof of decades of authentic ritual veneration and generational care.

Exceptional Ethnographic Details:

Generational Altar Patina: The head and face feature a glass-smooth, deep honey-black patina, burnished from decades of manual handling, oil washings, and ritual prayers.

Dense Camwood Encrustation: The lower torso, arms, and legs are heavily layered with a dense, thick, caked orange-red crust of traditional camwood powder paste (*Osun*), showcasing incredible surface texture.

Finely Detailed Coiffure: The towering, architectural crested hairstyle (*agogo*) is intricately incised and retains deep, weathered traces of traditional indigo pigment.

Authentic Altar-Worn Base:** The figure stands on an organically weathered circular pedestal measuring approximately 3.5 inches in diameter. The underside exhibits deep natural wood oxidation, manual carving scores, and remnants of an old collection mounting adhesive.

Condition & Structural Report:

This figure is structurally solid and displays an extraordinary antique presentation. In complete alignment with its significant age and native African use, the figure exhibits a deep, dramatic natural wood contraction split (checking) running vertically through the left leg, buttocks, and base. This split is completely stable, ancient, and deeply oxidized within the crevice. Crucially, the split terminates at the torso, leaving the exceptional neck, face, and head entirely immaculate. Please examine the high-resolution macro photos to appreciate this stunning example of authentic tribal history.

Dimensions: Approximately 11 inches tall; base is 3.5" wide.