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Queen Mother

The word Yoruba describes both a language and a group of people spread across Nigeria and Benin. Yoruba origins can be traced back to the holy city of Ife at the end of the first millennium. According to the Yoruba peoples’ myth of the origin, of Ife, it was the place where the gods descended from the skies to populate the world. According to tradition, when the first Oba (Benin king) died his head was sent to Ife for burial, with Ife sending back a bronze head for the ancestors’ altar. Fascinated by this creation Benin royalty beseeched the Ife king to send an artist who could teach the art of bronze work to Benin craftsmen. The Benin were already skilled working with this extremely rare metal called bronze but had trouble with the technique of casting. The Ife artist Ighea was sent and passed on the now legendary “lost wax” casting technique which enabled the Benin to create items using less bronze metal. Lost wax casting can be used for bronze or brass or gold.

At Authentic Africa.com we believe that we have the best and most unique bronze on the market. Our high grade bronze selections have been met with the greatest approval from collectors world wide. Please note that the majority of the items are unique with only one or two available thusly our inventory is always changing. If you have a particular piece in mind and don't see it here or if you have a space that you think a bronze selection would look wonderful in just contact us for photos of our current inventory! We obtain a large assortment of African Bronze selections every season. So large that we can not possibly post all of the items on the site. ~Kim

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