Images(3)

Beaded Sheath for an Òrìsà Okó Staff

Artist Yorùbá artist

Dateprobably early 20th century

MediumCloth and glass beads

Dimensions68 x 10 1/2 x 2 in. (172.7 x 26.7 x 5.1 cm)

ClassificationsTextiles

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the State of North Carolina, by exchange

Object number2000.5.2

On View

On view

Label TextThis covering for a staff was made to honor Okó, an òriṣà associated with agriculture. Devotees commission specific blacksmiths to create iron staffs, providing the blacksmiths with used hoes to be reworkedfashioned into the staffs. In reworking, the metal is refined and strengthened. The beaded cover provides additional visual affirmation of the staff’s importance and power.

As the staff it would have covered was likely never intended to be used as a weapon, it is instead part of regalia used to convey its owner’s power. In addition to being a beautiful object, this sheath is elaborately beaded. Beads appear on various forms of Yorùbá regalia and commonly signal prestige.
ProvenanceJean Noel, Lyons, 1954-1989; Pierre Dartevelle, Brussels, 1989-1995; Michael Oliver, NY, 1995-2000; purchased by NCMA 2000.Published ReferencesRebecca Martin Nagy, "Acquisitions Expand African Collection," NCMA supplement to the Durham Herald-Sun (September 2000), 6-7, illus. (b-w) 6.

Exhibition HistoryRaleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "Objects of Desire: The Museum Collects, 1994-2004," July 18, 2004-February 27, 2005.

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," October 7, 2022–present. Object Rights Statement

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