Edo
Commemorative Head of a King (Oba)
Edo, 1847-1896
Physical Qualities
Copper alloy, 20 1/4 x 11 x 11 in. (51.4 x 28 x 28 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Alan Wurtzburger
Object Number
1954.145.44
The kings of Benin had dedicated court artists and the wealth to commission art on a grand scale. At the palace in Benin City, Nigeria, each newly crowned king would ceremonially pour molten bronze into the form for a commemorative bronze head destined for his father’s memorial altar. This is a centuries-old tradition, where such sculptures are not only the king’s first commission, but also an artwork he helped to produce. This beautifully abstracted head has large, stylized eyes and projecting wings on the beaded coral crown, two elements that were fashionable during the reigns of Adolo (reigned 1848–1888) and Ovonramwen (reigned 1888–1897, reigned in exile until 1914).
"The Wurtzburger Collection of African Sculpture," Jan 12, 1954 - Feb 14, 1954, BMA, Cat44, illus. p. 17.
"Wurtzburger Collection," Jun 21, 1954 - Aug 31, 1954, Washington D.C., School of Advanced Studies, Johns Hopkins University.
"African Sculpture," Oct 8, 1954 - Nov 7, 1954, Rochester, The Memorial Art Galelry.
"4,000 Years of Modern Art," Nov 27, 1956 - Jan 13, 1957, BMA, Cat. 32. Circulated to June 30, 1957.
"Totems not Taboo," Feb 26, 1959 - Mar 31, 1959, Houston, Contemporary Arts Museum; illus, Nigerian section.
"Benin," Sep 21, 1968 - Nov 17, 1968, Houston, Museum of Fine Arts, Cat 7, repro. p. 10.
"Lyare: Playing the Palace Theatre," Nov 1, 2009 - Feb 28, 2009, The University of Pennsylvania Musuem of Archaeology and Anthropology.
African Reinstallation, "The Artist," Apr 2015, Wurtzburger Galleries, Kathryn Gunsch.
"Wurtzburger Collection," Jun 21, 1954 - Aug 31, 1954, Washington D.C., School of Advanced Studies, Johns Hopkins University.
"African Sculpture," Oct 8, 1954 - Nov 7, 1954, Rochester, The Memorial Art Galelry.
"4,000 Years of Modern Art," Nov 27, 1956 - Jan 13, 1957, BMA, Cat. 32. Circulated to June 30, 1957.
"Totems not Taboo," Feb 26, 1959 - Mar 31, 1959, Houston, Contemporary Arts Museum; illus, Nigerian section.
"Benin," Sep 21, 1968 - Nov 17, 1968, Houston, Museum of Fine Arts, Cat 7, repro. p. 10.
"Lyare: Playing the Palace Theatre," Nov 1, 2009 - Feb 28, 2009, The University of Pennsylvania Musuem of Archaeology and Anthropology.
African Reinstallation, "The Artist," Apr 2015, Wurtzburger Galleries, Kathryn Gunsch.
Frederick John Lamp, "See the Music Hear the Dance: Rethinking African Art at the Baltimore Museum of Art." New York: Prestel, 2003, p.246, ill.
'The Intercollegian,' Vol. 78, no. 5, Jan-Feb. 1961, p. 11 repro. Members Calendar, BMA, Feb. 1985
CAA Newsletter, Spring, 1982, p. 12
'The City's Pride,' I, 5, Jan. 1983, p. 9 The BMA Members Calendar, 1 and 2, 1983
The Baltimore Museum of Art. "A Picture Book." The Baltimore Museum of Art Record, 1955: ill. p. 93.
BMA. "African Spirit Series" brochure 2003-2004. ill.
Baltimore Museum of Art. "The Baltimore Museum of Art: Celebrating a Museum." Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2014.
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