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Some
authorities have simply described the Igboukwu Roped Pot as the
most intricate bronze sculpture ever fabricated by man. Attention
to symmetry and details in the finishing is astounding. And many
more artifacts like these were manufactured in the heartland of
Alaigbo when most of present-day Europe was in the Dark Ages.
The question that readily comes to mind is; who were these masters,
what inspired them to take the time, effort and patience to create
objects like these? The hollow spirals at base of the vase have
close resemblance to the milky way galaxy.
An international archeological connoisseur, on closely reviewing
the Igboukwu Bronze collections, testified thus:
"It
is possible that the inhabitants of Igbo-Ukwu had a metalworking
art that flourished as early as the ninth century. Three sites
have been excavated, revealing hundreds of ritual vessels and
regalia castings of bronze or leaded bronze that are among the
most inventive and technically accomplished bronzes ever made.
The people of Igbo-Ukwu, ancestors of present-day Igbo, were the
earliest smithers of copper and its alloys in West Africa, working
the metal through hammering, bending, twisting, and incising.
They are likely among the earliest groups of West Africans to
employ the lost-wax casting techniques in the production of bronze
sculptures."
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For
the effort deployed in making these masterpieces, like this
bowl-on-a-stand composite, experts believe that these are
not just everyday household items. But they could be for exclusive
use of a very wealthy and powerful person as corroborated
by similar items excavated at the burial chamber of an ancestral
Igbo noble man. Intricate design of external finishes is precise
to the minutest of detail. Igboukwu bronze work predates the
Ife and Benin counterparts by, at least 2 centuries. Isotope
studies show that the raw materials used by master-craftsmen
of these distinct bronze cultures were different. |
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The
most amazing of the large bronze pieces, in terms of surface
detail, is the snail shell-shaped vessel with a mounted
leopard. Closer viewing of fine artwork reveals images of
animals and insects amongst the bands of variegated patterns
that cover the entire object. |
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The
bowl with handle was finished with bands of interwoven horizontal
and vertical bars in pattern of basket weave. The scarified-face
sculpture is a pendant possibly won by titled persons. Facial scarification
can still be seen in Alaigbo today. It has been regarded as a mark
of nobility and wealth. This piece affirms that many sociocultural
practices of this generation of Ndiigbo could have persevered for
thousands of years. Similar face pendants are still won today by
traditional rulers within Alaigbo and surrounding former kingdoms
of Benin, to the west and Igalla, to the northwest. Bronze fly-whisk
handle, remnant of a fly-whisk with non-metal flexible strands,
is exquisitely rendered with miniature human figure on elephant's
back. These findings portray components of the opulent regalia of
an ancient Igbo titled man. |
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Above
is an artist's illustration of what the ancestral Igbo noble man's
burial chamber looked like at the peak of the Igboukwu Bronze
era. Elephant tusk, finished with intricate carving and hollowed
out to function as a horn, is lying on the chamber floor. The
metal staff of office or rank is standing, left of the seated
man, impelled into the wooden platform. Elaborate dress adorned
with decorated cap and beads of sundry forms and colorations indicate
the superfluous wealth of the deceased. There are suggestions,
when the chamber was first unearthed, that this dead ancestor
was buried with some of his slaves or servants and other cherished
possessions. |
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Osondu
The Survival Struggle for Ndiigbo |
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