Emblem (Edan) | Yale University Art Gallery

18th–19th century

Paired male and female edan, figurative staffs, are presented to elder men upon their initiation into the higher ranks of the Òsugbó society of Yoruba elders. In this pair, the female holds a baby and the male smokes a pipe. In use, the staffs are worn suspended by a chain from an individual's neck and symbolize the union of male and female–a force of primordial unity invoked in times of disharmony among community members. The staffs may be placed at the site of a dispute to reconcile the parties, adjudicate claims, or atone for violations.

Medium: Brass and iron
Dimensions: 23 5/8 × 11 × 3 5/8 in. (60 × 27.9 × 9.2 cm)
Credit Line: Charles B. Benenson, B.A. 1933, Collection
Accession Number: 2006.51.453
Geography: Guinea Coast, Nigeria
Culture: Ìjèbú Yorùbá, Òsugbó (Ògbóni) association
Period: 18th–19th century
Classification: Tools and Equipment
Disclaimer: Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Provenance

Galerie Balolu (Gerbrand Luttik), Amsterdam: unknown date - November 16, 1989
Charles B. Benenson Collection, donated to Yale University Art Gallery in 2004

Bibliography

Frederick John Lamp, Amanda Maples, and Laura M. Smalligan, Accumulating Histories: African Art from the Charles B. Benenson Collection at the Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2012), 267, ill

Barkley L. Hendricks, "Acquisitions, July 1, 2005–June 30, 2006," in "Photography at Yale," special issue, Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin (2006), 222, 227, ill

Object copyright

No Copyright - United States

Additional information

Object/Work type

emblems (symbols)

Subject

children (people by age group) men pipes women

Technical metadata and APIs

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