id:			130708
accession number:	1953.425
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/1953.425
updated:		2023-04-05 11:07:28.642000

Plaque, 1500s–1600s. Nigeria, Benin Kingdom, Ẹdo peoples, members of the Igun Eronmwon (royal brasscasters) guild. Copper alloy; overall: 49.4 x 30.6 cm (19 7/16 x 12 1/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund 1953.425

title:				Plaque
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			1500s–1600s
creation date earliest:		1500
creation date latest:		1699
current location:		108A Sub-Saharan
creditline:			John L. Severance Fund
copyright:			

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culture:	Nigeria, Benin Kingdom, Ẹdo peoples, members of the Igun Eronmwon (royal brasscasters) guild
technique:	Copper alloy
department:	African Art
collection:	African Art
type:		Sculpture
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

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measurements: Overall: 49.4 x 30.6 cm (19 7/16 x 12 1/16 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		The Imagination of Primitive Man
	opening date:   1962-01-18T05:00:00
	<i>The Imagination of Primitive Man</i>. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO (organizer) (January 18-February 25, 1962).

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

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PROVENANCE

	Commissioned from the Igun Eronmwon
	date: 1500s-1600s
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	by descent to Ọba Ovọnramwẹn (Ovọnramwẹn Nogbaisi, [c. 1857–1914, r. 1888–97], Royal Palace, Benin City, until the Siege of Benin (1897)
	date: c. 1857-1897
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	possibly Sir Admiral Rawson
	date: ?-?
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	(John Wise Ltd., New York City, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH)
	date: ?-1953
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
	date: 1953-
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


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fun fact:
The bent sides of this plaque once helped attach it to wooden beams in a palace.

digital description:


wall description:
Craftsmen modeled brass plaques like this in wax before casting them with hot metal. Molds pushed out figures’ general shapes, then details—such as this warrior’s staff and court sword (<em>ẹbẹn</em>)—were added by hand. Reflecting Benin’s global connections, the incised flowers may have Islamic or European origins. Called <em>ebe-amẹn</em> (river leaves) they are identified with Olókun, god of the waters. The interlaced side motifs may connect several early plaques also linked by topic and style. The palace plaques were in storage before the 1897 Siege of Benin. Recently, an art historian virtually reconstructed their former display in the palace based on their dimensions and imagery.
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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

	Brooklyn Museum. <em>Masterpieces of African Art. Exhibition Dates: October 21, 1954-January 2, 1955.</em> [Brooklyn]: Brooklyn Museum, 1954.
	page number: 	Mentioned: p. 41; Reproduced: no. 58
	url:		

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook.</em> Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958.
	page number: 	Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 384
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1958/page/n72

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 302
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1966/page/n326

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 302
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1969/page/n326

	Wixom, WIlliam D. "African Art at the Cleveland Museum of Art." <em>African Arts</em>. 10, no. 3. (April 1977) 16-25.
	page number: 	Mentioned: p. 19; Reproduced: p. 25, fig 13.
	url:		

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 411
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1978/page/n431

	Gunsch, Kathryn Wysocki. <em>The Benin Plaques: A 16th Century Imperial Monument.</em> London : Routledge, Taylor &amp; Francis Group, 2018.
	page number: 	Mentioned: p. 99; Reproduced: p. 100, fig. 5.37
	url:		

	Windmuller-Luna, Kristen. “Art from the Benin Kingdom.” <em>Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine </em>61, no. 1 (Winter 2021): 34-35.
	page number: 	Reproduced and Mentioned: P. 34.
	url:		

	<em>Digital Benin, </em>Markk Museum Am Rothenbaum Kulturen und Kunste der Welt<em>, (</em>Last Updated: 2021-02-13)
	page number: 	ID 130708
	url:		https://digitalbenin.org/catalogue/8_130708

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1953.425/1953.425_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1953.425/1953.425_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1953.425/1953.425_full.tif