Object Name: Headdress with beaded fringe
Place of Origin: Nigeria
Cultural Group: Yoruba peoples
Materials Used: Wood, glass beads, cowrie shells, string, palm nuts, cotton cloth
Dimensions: H: 24 cm, W: 17 cm, D: 16 cm (H: 9.4 in, W: 6.6 in, D: 6.2 in)
Credit line and Accession Number: Fowler Museum at UCLA. Gift of Mr. George Lichter. X80.907

The beaded fringe marks the front of this ancestral masking headdress, suggesting a crown’s veil. Around the sides and back are cowries and ikin Ifa (divination palm nuts), signs of spiritual protection and guidance for the outings of this ara orun (being from beyond).

Source: Drewal, H., Mason, J. (1998). “Beads, Body, and Soul – Art and Light in the Yoruba Universe”, Los Angeles: UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History. page 275.