Yoruba Ogboni Male and Female Seated Figures PAIR, Nigeria #854, 857 PAIR

Yoruba Ogboni Male and Female Seated Figures PAIR, Nigeria #854, 857 PAIR Measurements: Height of tallest 11 11/16 inches (29.8 cm). Provenance: Property from the Collection of Georgette D'Angelo, Glencoe, Illinois. Acquired in the late 1960s or early 1970s Headed by the Oluwo (Chief Priest), the Yoruba Ogboni (meaning 'Cult of Old Age') is a Society of Respected Elderly Men and Women responsible for the management and wellbeing of their Community through the maintenance of Law and Order - often with the power to sentence criminals to death. They are also responsible for the selection and eventual burial of the Oba ('King') of the Village and even have the power to expel the King should the Group deem him unfit to rule. The Edan Ogboni (also called Edan Osugbo among the Ijebu and Egba of Yorubaland) is used by Ogboni Cult members as a Symbol of Membership but it is also believed to be the God Edan in physical form. When a new member joins the Cult, he or she is given an Edan to repr