Han Coray (1880–1974), Zurich/Agnuzzo

Pierre Dartevelle (1940–2022), Brussels

Jean-Jacques Rotthier Collection (1932–2009), Brussels, then by descent

Public auction:

Bonhams, London, Tribal Art, 2 December 1991, lot 44, illustrated on the cover.

Morigi (Paolo), Meisterwerke alt-afrikanischer Kultur aus der Sammlung Casa Coray, Agnuzzo, Casa Coray, 1968, fig. 58

Dartevelle (Valérie) & Plisnier (Valentine), Pierre Dartevelle et les Arts Premiers. Mémoire et Continuité, vol. II, 5 Continents, 2021, p. 44, fig. 56

50e Foire des Antiquaires de Belgique, Bruxelles, 21–30 January 2005, p. 284 (Advertisement Galerie Dartevelle)

Formerly in the Han Coray collection, this bronze is a fragment of one of the architectural plaques that adorned the royal palace of Benin. The composition centers on a high-ranking courtier whose status is indicated by his regalia. He wears a beaded crown with a lateral feather, a coral-bead collar (odigba), and brass bracelets while holding a ceremonial sword (eben). The background features stippled textures and a four-lobed river-leaf motif (ebe-ame), associated with water. While this fragment depicts a member of the royal court, the broader corpus of Benin plaques also includes numerous representations of European traders and soldiers. These traders supplied the manillas, imported brass currencies that constituted the principal raw material for bronze casting. Within the Edo worldview, Europeans were regarded as emissaries of Olokun, a white-faced deity who sent wealth and offspring across the sea. Artists depicted their long hair, facial features, and clothing to emphasize their foreign origin. Their presence on the palace walls does not celebrate European trade itself, but rather the Oba's control over maritime wealth and his legendary triumph over Olokun.