|
Full Citation |
Material Information |
|
Title: |
Diviner's Bag (apo Ifa) |
|
Physical Description: |
Cloth, glass beads, leather 9 3/4 x 9 3/4 x 1 1/2 in. (24.8 x 24.8 x 3.8 cm) with strap: 19 3/4 |
|
Creator: |
Yoruba People, 20th Century |
Subjects |
|
Subject: |
Exhibition -- Between the Beads: Reading African Beadwork |
|
Spatial Coverage: |
Africa -- Nigeria |
Notes |
|
Abstract: |
Beaded objects are generally the prerogative of royalty, and the importance of diviners as negotiators between humans and deities is underscored by their possession of beaded accoutrements. This bag was designed to hold the diviner’s tools, and its beaded patterns and colors reference Yoruba cosmology. The face is a symbol of the ancestors and recalls their sacred authority. The interlace pattern is a royal symbol that alludes to the role of Orunmila, also known as Ifa, the god of wisdom associated with divination. Triangles or zigzags reference the thunderbolts of the god Shango, as does the color red, and his wife Oya, in yellow, whereas blue and white reflect the cool, calm and rational powers of Orunmila. |
|
Acquisition: |
Museum purchase, funds provided by the Caroline Julier and James G. Richardson Art Acquisition Fund |
|
|