Beaded Figure of a Horse and Rider

Origin: Yoruba Tribe, Nigeria
Composition: glass beads, internal wood frame

This beautiful Yoruba Tribe beaded horse and rider represents a royal court official in complete equestrian gear. It is an elegant and superior beaded work which would be an outstanding acquisition for any art collector or as a fine component of a well-designed home or office. This piece falls into the category of “court art”, used for royal ceremonies and placed on altars of chief’s and important dignitaries, used to demonstate prestige, wealth, and status. Yoruba artwork is sought worldwide and figures are particularly uncommon and collectible.

The word ‘Yoruba’ describes both a language and a tribe living across Nigeria and the Popular Republic of Benin, in an area of forest and savannah. Their origins can be traced back to the end of the first millennium like the civilization of Ife. Following the collapse of the Ife civilization, a number of kingdoms such as the Ijebu and the Oyo emerged. They, in turn, disintegrated during the 18th and 19th centuries, but were revived by the colonial powers at the end of the 19th century and today still form the political structure of the Yoruba people. The enormous scale of the slave trade in Nigeria contributed to the diaspora of the Yoruba people and informed spiritual practices in countries such as Haiti (Passage from Bacquart, Tribal Arts of Africa).