Cleveland Museum of Art

Crown (adéńlá)

Date

1900s

Medium

Cloth (probably cotton and wool), glass beads, reeds, cardboard, wood, plant fiber, cotton, and quills

Culture

Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Yorùbá-style maker

Department

African Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

The most important of all regalia, topped with the "royal bird" Okin, this headdress connects the king to Oduduwa, the mythical founder of the Yoruba. The veil of beaded strings masks the identity of the wearer and protects his subjects from the supernatural powers that radiate from his face. The crown also signifies the "inner head" of the king, the locus of an awesome life force called ase. No one––not even the king who wears it––is allowed to look inside this crown, as that's where it is most powerful.

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