Art Institute of Chicago

Altar Stool

Attributed to an unidentified Ketu master (active mid-19th century)

Date

Mid–/late 19th century

Medium

Wood and pigment

Culture

Nigeria

Department

Arts of Africa

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

A sculptural tour-de-force, this stool was made for an altar dedicated to the deity Sango. At its center is a Sango priest—identifiable by his double-bladed staff and cape covered in cowrie shells—and a woman who reclines before him in a formal greeting. Moving clockwise, they are encircled by a man playing a drum; two women devotees, one of whom is holding a chicken for sacrifice; a rifle-toting soldier leading a bound captive; and a woman holding a large offering bowl. The motif of the soldier and captive, which also appears on the adjacent Esu dance staff by the same artist [see 1991.396], reflects the violent invasions that marked the era.

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