Page 181 - Art In The Age Of Exploration (Great Section on Chinese Art Ming Dynasty)

the accentuated deformity of the head in a series a few examples of sculpture in the round, includ- opens onto the convex side of the tusk rather than
of terra-cotta sculptures excavated at Obalara's ing the one shown here, hornblowers appear fairly the concave side as is the case with all other Afri-
Land, Ife. In fact, a comparison of our piece with frequently on plaques next to the Oba, chiefs, or can horns. This characteristic is readily evident in
the full sensual volumes of the wonderful seated warriors. In court ritual a hornblower always sculpture of hornblowers and is confirmed by the
figure formerly in Tada (Eyo and Willett 1980, no. accompanied the king and announced his ivory horns that have come down to us, for exam-
92), recently restored conjecturally to Ife art, sug- presence. ple the magnificent example in the Museum fur
gests the most convincing explanation: the The seventeenth-century Dutch scholar Olfert Volkerkunde in Vienna (Fagg 1963, 54a).
Vienna Dwarf should be included among the Dapper writes that the king of Benin "appears in Besides the hornblower exhibited here, at least
works executed in Benin when Ife influence was public once a year, covered with his royal orna- five other examples can be dated around the
significant and supports the hypothesis that there ments, accompanied by an entourage of three or second half of the sixteenth century and thus
were indeed important relationships between four hundred gentlemen as infantry or cavalry assigned to the early period of Benin art: another
these two art traditions, at least in the early period and by a group of players of (musical) instru- in the Museum of Mankind (Dark 1973, 44), one
of Benin history. These relationships, which ments, some preceding and others following the in the Museum fur Volkerkunde, Berlin (Luschan
according to some oral traditions were very close, sovereign" (Dapper 1686, 311). In the very 1919, pi. 72), one in the National Museum of
must now be substantiated by thorough formal famous engraving appearing as a plate in that vol- Scotland (inv. no. 1985.631), one in the Brooklyn
investigations. ume and illustrating the royal cavalry riding Museum, and one in an unidentified collection
The features of the second Vienna dwarf (Du- against a background of the royal palace and city (Sotheby's London, sale July 1974, lot 58, for-
chateau 1990,16-17) are stylized and substan- of Benin, two hornblowers are clearly visible, merly S. R. Ingersoll Collection). The similarities
tially more impersonal, more in accord with the along with men playing drums, tambourines, and among these six works are so strong as to suggest
Benin figure canons epitomized in the Queen triangles. The illustration is misleading, however, not only that they were executed at the same time
Mother Head (cat. 61). Dark nonetheless agrees as the artist had as inspiration only Dapper's brief but also that they were products of the same
with Fagg that, on the whole, both the Vienna description and did not know that African horns, workshop; the piece shown here, the one in
figures and the related Berlin head can be con- usually made of ivory, do not have the mouthpiece Berlin, and the one formerly in the Ingersoll Col-
sidered works of Edo artists, albeit different sculp- at one end like European instruments, but are lection were probably even by the same sculptor.
tors, perhaps working in different periods. played through a side mouthpiece like flutes. The massive figure, set in a rigidly frontal pose,
Disagreeing with Fagg, he suggests, however, that Instruments from Benin and Yoruba are further stands heavily on the ground with his huge feet,
the figure represented here is a woman; while his distinguished by the fact that the mouthpiece rendered with surprising realism, which, like his
arguments are ingenious, they do not seem con- massive legs, are disproportionate to the height of
clusive for determining the figure's sex, especially the figure but functional to the solid balance of
if we accept that the two figures are not contem- the piece. In contrast, the arms are thin and, like
porary and did not originally form a pair. the torso, show no sign of muscles. The delicate
The sculpture exhibited here, with its large gesture of the left hand holding the musical
body and admirably shortened limbs, has a com- instrument and following its movement provides
pact structure, rounded, strongly sensual volumes, a contrast to the figure's overall severity. The
and smooth, gentle surfaces. The head, marked by large head is made even more imposing and com-
sharp relief and deep furrows, conveys an extraor- pact by the cap pulled down to the eyes, over an
dinary, moving humanity. The apparent contrast impersonal face with stylized, stiff features.
between the sluggish heaviness of the torso and The artist's attention is concentrated on the
the dramatic deformity of the head is reconciled sumptuous costume: the fiber helmet (Forman
by means of the sensitive modeling and fluid and Dark 1960, 23-25), decorated with parallel
handling, resulting in a work of incomparable bands of chevrons running in opposite directions;
formal unity. E.B. the thin, tight-fitting, finely chiseled armor,
which contrasts with the rigid collar set with
leopard's teeth; and the skirt of heavy precious
cloth held by a belt decorated with the mask of a
leopard.
The studied opposition between the very beau-
tiful series of parallel horizontal bands and taper-
63 ing oblique bands gathered together by the
crescent-shaped, upward-pointing piece, typical of
HORNBLOWER the costume of high Benin officials, introduces the
only hint of movement into the otherwise rigid
i6th century figure. The intricate ornamentation, with its
Edo peoples, Benin kingdom, Nigeria subtle, virtuoso rendering of the dress that
cast copper alloy encloses the body of the musician like a precious
height 62 f24 /2J wrapping and exalts its impersonal quality, is in
2
references: Dapper 1686, 311; Luschan 1919, pi. 72; perfect accord with the expressive canons of a
Forman and Dark 1960, 23-25; Fagg 1963, 36, 540;
Dark 1973, 44; London 1974 court art whose purpose was the glorification of
the sovereign.
The Trustees of the British Museum, London Sculptures like this were placed on the altars to
ancestors and were associated with the royal
Hornblowers served an important function in the ancestor cult (Fagg 1963, 36).
complex ceremonials of Benin society. Along with E.B

180 CIRCA 1492