Tunic,

late 19th–early 20th century

This resplendent tunic would have been worn by a Yoruba king, or oba, on ritual occasions, dazzling spectators with its reflective quality and communicating the king’s status and wealth. When seed beads were introduced into Nigeria in the eighteenth century, the Yoruba Oyo Empire controlled trade routes, and thus the acquisition of glass beads, encouraging the association of beads with elite ase, or authority. The red stone beads sewn into the tunic’s neckline, called okun, were likely produced locally, remnants of a once robust bead trade among the various Yoruba kingdoms. The tunic’s recurring interlace pattern is found almost exclusively on royal palace articles, and an appliquéd face symbolizes Oduduwa, the first king. The miniature conical crowns (adenla) signify an oba’s ase, and their shape refers to his ibori, the conical shrine to the inner head. The intricate three-dimensional birds placed to each side of the crowns express the power of women, or "mothers." Finally, the red cones with white centers near the shoulders and nestled under the crowns represent the animal horns that enable an oba to speak with authority. Numerous repairs, indicated by the presence of later, larger beads, suggest that the tunic was valued and cared for over an extended period.