This imposing crowned head
type: Product
description: This imposing crowned head belongs to the celebrated tradition of royal copper-alloy sculpture produced at Ile-Ife, the sacred and political centre of the Yoruba world. It represents a royal personage, most probably an Ooni, the ruler of Ife. The remarkable naturalism of the face, with its softly modelled lips, almond-shaped eyes and composed expression, is combined with the highly formalised vertical striations extending across the face. The elaborate crown is articulated by rows of raised beads and surmounted by a prominent rosette and tall central crest. The cylindrical neck is encircled by horizontal bands and pierced by an opening that may have served in the mounting, attachment or ritual presentation of the head. The surface is particularly noteworthy for its complex, multilayered patina. Rather than presenting a single homogeneous colour, the metal displays successive reddish-brown, ochre, dark brown, blackish and locally green-grey areas of oxidation and mineralisation. These layers appear particularly pronounced within recesses, around the details of the crown and across areas of worn and pitted metal. Their differentiated character suggests repeated and prolonged processes of corrosion under changing environmental conditions. Such superimposed oxidation layers are compatible with considerable antiquity and may result from extended periods of burial, exposure and renewed contact with soil and moisture. The patina should nevertheless be understood as supporting evidence rather than as an independent means of dating the sculpture. The age and formation of individual corrosion layers can only be established through scientific examination. Metallurgical and microscopic analysis of the surface and its stratigraphy would be required to distinguish ancient corrosion products from later alteration or intervention. Visually, however, the depth, heterogeneity and apparent integration of the different oxidation layers with the underlying surface are noteworthy charact…
brand: Galerie Wolfgang Jaenicke
sku: MAZ21946
additional property: Title
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Default Title
offers: AggregateOffer
  price currency: EUR
  offer count: 1
  offers: Offer
    price currency: EUR
    availability: https://schema.org/InStock
    item condition: https://schema.org/NewCondition
    sku: MAZ21946

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