A bronze head in the style of Ife, which probably represents the usupartor Lajuwa (Frank Willet) to a comparable terracotta sculpture), who took possession of Ife after the death of Ooni Aworokolokin the throne. "The headgear seems to be made of wickerwork with a beaded edge." Willet; partlygreenish encrusted patina; Wolfgang Jaenicke Gallery, Berlin, Invitation1.8.19

In Nigeria's National Museum in Lagos we find a terra-cotta head which is called “Lajuwa” Head, found in the Ife Palace, Ile-Ife, 12th -15th century. „The head ... was said to have been kept in the king’s palace. It is called Lajuwa, who is remembered as the usurper who became king when Oni Aworokolokin died (Eyo and Willett 1980, p.103).

The terracotta head in Lagos has nearly the same size like our head. And for sure it represents the same person.

Description: The portrait is of a relative youthful man. It is calm and dignified with the mouth shut. It is particularly engaging - in quality and appearance, and with deep serenity. Art-historical importance of this piece lies in its highly developed and distinctive sculptural style, in the tension between realism and abstraction. On one side it is naturalistic, portraitlike and on the other side it´s classical and timeless. It is an idealized naturalism.
The work is characterized by the typical Ife style features: The corners of the upper eyelids hang over those of the lower ones. Around the lips is an accented edge. There are grooves around the neck.
Condition report: Our bronze is produced in the lost wax casting method. It has two holes in the neck, one left and one right, most likely to fix the head on a wooden post. Furthermore, there are a few very small holes in the front of the neck and an other very small hole in the hair, at the back of the head. The headgear is open on the top. The rim on which the bronze stands shows minor damage on the backside.

Lit.:Bronzes and Terra-Cottas from Ile-Ife, H. Meyerowitz and V. Meyerowitz,The Burlington Magazine for Connoisseurs,. 75, No. 439 (Oct., 1939), pp. 150-152+154-155.
Arts de L'Afrique Noire, Jean Laude, translated by Jean Decock, University of California Press Berkeley, 1966, 1. Paperback-Edition 1973, p.118.
2000 ans d’histoire africaine. Le sol, la parole et l’écrit. Mélanges en hommage à Raymond Mauny. Tome I. Paris : Société française d'histoire d'outre-mer. Ife and Raymond Mauny, by Thurstan Shaw, 1981, 5-6-1, pp. 109-135.
Nigerian Bronzes: work from Ife, K. C. Murray, Vol. 15, Issue 57, March 1941 , pp. 71-80.

sold

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Height: 60 cm
Weight: 2,4 kg