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Twin Figure (Ère Ìbejì)
late 1800s–early 1900s
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
Such a figure is carved when a twin dies in infancy and serves as a memorial to the surviving sibling. These twin figures are always carved to look like adult individuals with idealized physical features. Various body adornments suggest the care parents devote to their children, while the erosion of facial features indicates the symbolic washing and feeding of the figure as a means to connect the soul of the deceased to that of the living twin.
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Details
- Title: Twin Figure (Ère Ìbejì)
- Date Created: late 1800s–early 1900s
- Physical Dimensions: Overall: 25.6 x 18.8 x 5.8 cm (10 1/16 x 7 3/8 x 2 5/16 in.)
- Type: Sculpture
- Rights: CC0
- External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/2016.9
- Medium: Wood, copper alloy, iron alloy, lead, glass beads, cowrie shells, twine, and pigment
- Fun Fact: This figure commemorates a twin that has died in infancy.
- Department: African Art
- Culture: Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Yorùbá-style maker
- Credit Line: Gift of Kim Sherwin
- Collection: African Art
- Accession Number: 2016.9
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