A Yoruba Sculpture

A Yoruba Sculpture; Nigeria, Ekiti Region, likely attributed to Olowe of Ise.

This remarkable Yoruba sculpture takes the form of a bowl-carrier, in which a vessel is supported by four kneeling female figures. Carved beneath the bowl, between the figures’ legs, is a skull, seamlessly integrated into the ensemble and non-removable, symbolizing the intimate relationship between life, death, and ancestral presence in Yoruba culture.

Attributed to Olowe of Ise, active circa 1870–1938, the work exemplifies his mastery of dynamic composition and intricate detail. Olowe is celebrated for transforming functional objects into complex sculptural narratives, combining multiple figures in expressive arrangements that convey both social and spiritual meaning. In this work, the kneeling women evoke ideals of devotion, femininity, and hierarchy, while the skull introduces an element of ancestral reverence, underscoring the continuity between the living and the dead.

Comparable Olowe ensembles are discussed in scholarly literature, including Beads, Body, and Soul: Art and Light in Yoruba Culture by Henry Drewal and John Mason, which highlights his synthesis of utility and narrative, as well as Yoruba: Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought (Smithsonian, 1996) and William Fagg’s Nigerian Images (1963), both emphasizing his innovative treatment of multi-figure compositions and his mastery of figural interplay.

This bowl-carrier demonstrates not only the technical virtuosity of Olowe of Ise but also the rich cultural significance of Yoruba sculptural art, in which form, function, and ritual converge. The integration of female figures and the skull into a single ensemble reflects Yoruba concerns with fertility, mortality, and social order, making it a compelling example of Olowe’s enduring artistic legacy.

Key literature on Olowe of Ise and his bowl or bowl-carrier sculptures includes Roslyn Adele Walker’s Olowe of Ise: A Yoruba Sculptor to Kings (National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, 1998), the principal catalogue raisonné and exhibition publication devoted to Olowe’s work, which discusses his carved bowls, veranda posts, doors, and ritual objects, situating them within Yoruba cultural and artistic practices. Susan Vogel’s edited volume, For Spirits and Kings: African Art from the Paul and Ruth Tishman Collection (Metropolitan Museum of Art), includes entries and plates on deeply carved Olowe bowls with figures, contextualizing them as courtly or ritual objects. Frank Willett’s African Art: An Introduction discusses Olowe’s innovative sculptural language and includes references to his lidded bowls with figural groups, while Paul S. Wingert’s African Negro Sculpture: A Loan Exhibition (M.H. de Young Memorial Museum) provides early mid‑20th‑century exhibition references to Yoruba bowls, sometimes attributed to or compared with Olowe’s circle. Broader studies on Yoruba sculpture that contextualize Olowe’s Olumeye-style vessels include Henry J. Drewal and John Pemberton III’s Yoruba: Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought, which contains extensive discussion of Yoruba prestige bowls and multi-figure carriers, with illustrations and typological analysis relevant to Olowe’s tradition. William Fagg and John Pemberton III’s Yoruba: Sculpture of West Africa offers a foundational survey including carved bowls and Yoruba figural groups within broader stylistic developments, while A. Rowland, H. J. Drewal, and J. Pemberton III’s Yoruba: Art and Aesthetics discusses Olumeye vessels in relation to Yoruba aesthetics and ceremonial usages, highlighting parallels to Olowe’s workshop tradition.

Height; 78 cm
Weight: 11,6 kg