Aken’ni Elao
Carved altar tusk
Nigeria, Kingdom of Benin. 18th century. Ivory, traces of burning
Comissioned from the Royal Ivory-sculptors Guild, Igbesanmwan, by the Royal Palace of Benin possibly by Oba Eresonyen ca. 1735; by descent to Oba Ovonramwen (Ovonramwen Nogbaisi, b. about 1857 - d. about 1914; reign: 1888 - 1897); looted from the Royal Palace in 1897 during the British military occupation of Benin – the defence bears the burn marks of the great fire that destroyed the capital; sold by (?) on 11 August 1898 to Stevens Auction House in London; came into the possession of the antiquarian William D. Webster
(1868-1913) between 1898 and 1902 and was sold by him on 3 June 1902 to the Stevens Auction House, the Webster inventory number "nº 5443" can still be read on the tusk ; sold in 1948 by the Berkeley Gallery (William Ohly) in London, the tusk was purchased by the Geneva Ethnography Museum for CHF 2571,30. MEG Inv. ETHAF 021934
“The Kingdom of Benin in what is current day Nigeria had a long history of exchange and trade with the Global North from the 15th century onwards. This was especially the case with the Portuguese, with whom they traded metals, pepper and slaves. The kingdom, ruled by the powerful monarchy, was at its most powerful under the reign of Oba Ewuare the Great in the 15th century and declined, losing power in the 1800s. The British, seeking to control and expand colonial territory, led an invasion of Benin City in 1897. British troops launched an assault on its capital, Benin City, during which the Royal Palace was plundered and burned to the ground. An estimated 10 000 objects made of brass, ivory and wood
were looted from Benin City. These so-called “Benin Bronzes” subsequently passed through the hands of art dealers into private and public collections around the world. Today there are some 100 items in Swiss public museums that originate from the Kingdom of Benin.”
Extract from Alice Hertzog & Enibokun Uzebu-Imarhiagbe, Benin Initiative Switzerland Report, (Eds: Michaela Oberhofer & Esther Tisa Francini), January 2023
