Fine Art / Visual Art · Lesson 5

Discovery, dating, characteristics and functions; the lost-wax process

JAMBWAECNECO

What the syllabus asks

JAMB: Ancient traditional art of Nigeria (Benin, Ife, Nok, Igbo-Ukwu): art forms, location, characteristics, beliefs, functions. JAMB Section B 3: Traditional Nigerian art (Nok, Igbo-Ukwu, Ife, Benin). Art terms: cire-perdue, terracotta.

WAEC: Ancient traditional art of Nigeria (Benin, Ife, Nok, Igbo-Ukwu): art forms, location, characteristics, beliefs, functions. JAMB Section B 3: Traditional Nigerian art (Nok, Igbo-Ukwu, Ife, Benin). Art terms: cire-perdue, terracotta.

NECO: Ancient traditional art of Nigeria (Benin, Ife, Nok, Igbo-Ukwu): art forms, location, characteristics, beliefs, functions. JAMB Section B 3: Traditional Nigerian art (Nok, Igbo-Ukwu, Ife, Benin). Art terms: cire-perdue, terracotta.

What you will learn

Locate and date Nok, Igbo-Ukwu, Ife and Benin.
State who discovered or excavated each.
Describe materials, techniques and characteristics.
Explain functions and underlying beliefs.
Describe the lost-wax process.
Compare the traditions.

Key points

Nok: Kaduna/Jos; Fagg; c. 900 BC (older 500 BC) to about AD 200; terracotta; pierced eyes; ornate hair.
Igbo-Ukwu: Anambra; Anozie 1938; Shaw 1959–60, 1964; 9th–10th c.; leaded bronze; roped pot.
Ife: Osun; Frobenius 1910; Wunmonije 1938; Willett; naturalism; Obalufon mask.
Benin: Edo; Oguola/Iguegha; Igun Eronmwon; plaques; Idia mask; 1897.
Benin periods: early, middle (plaques), late (flanges, winged crowns).
Lost wax is used by Ife, Benin, Igbo-Ukwu.
Most “bronzes” are brass or copper alloys.
Answer with location, date, discovery, materials, traits, function, examples.

Start here: Introduction: why Nigerian traditional art matters

Nigeria has one of the oldest and richest sculptural histories in Africa. From the Nok terracottas of more than 2,000 years ago, through the astonishing bronzes of Igbo-Ukwu, the naturalistic heads of Ife and the royal court art of Benin, to the soapstone figures of Esie, Nigerian art is studied in museums and universities across the world. Both WAEC (Paper 2 Section B, where you answer two questions) and JAMB (Section B 3) test it heavily.

What examiners expect for each culture

Location: present-day state and nearby towns.
Date/period: approximate, with “about” or “c.” where appropriate.
Discovery: who, when, how.
Materials and techniques: terracotta, bronze/brass, copper, ivory, stone; modelling, lost-wax casting, carving.
Characteristics (style): describe specific features.
Functions: religious, royal, commemorative, decorative.
Examples of works and where they are kept.

“Bronze” or “brass”?

Popular books call most Nigerian metal sculptures “bronzes”. Strictly, bronze is copper + tin, while brass is copper + zinc. Scientific analysis shows that most Benin and many Ife castings are actually brass or mixed copper alloys, some Ife works are almost pure copper, and Igbo-Ukwu works are leaded bronze. In exams “bronze” is accepted, but writing “copper-alloy (brass or bronze)” shows extra knowledge.

Terracotta

Fired, unglazed clay. Nok, Ife and Owo produced fine terracottas, built by hand (coiling and modelling), not cast.

How to use this lesson

For each tradition, learn five things in the same order: location (state and nearest town), discovery (who, when), date (century), materials and technique, and characteristics and functions. Then learn one or two named works. This “five-box” method fits almost every Paper 2 question on Nigerian art, and it is how the comparison table in 5.11 is organised.

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Practice questions

1. Nok terracottas were first noticed by

tin miners
missionaries
oil prospectors
road builders

Show answer

A: tin miners
Found during tin mining.

2. The archaeologist who identified the Nok culture in the 1940s was

Thurstan Shaw
Frank Willett
Leo Frobenius
Bernard Fagg

Show answer

D: Bernard Fagg
Fagg named the Nok culture.

3. A feature of Nok heads is

striated faces
coral bead collars
pierced pupils, nostrils and ears
gold leaf

Show answer

C: pierced pupils, nostrils and ears
Pierced features are typical.

4. The Igbo-Ukwu bronzes were first found in 1938 by

Ekpo Eyo
Isaiah Anozie
Thurstan Shaw
Kenneth Murray

Show answer

B: Isaiah Anozie
While digging a cistern.

5. Igbo-Ukwu is in present-day

Anambra State
Osun State
Edo State
Kaduna State

Show answer

A: Anambra State
Near Awka/Onitsha.

Key words

Terracotta: Fired unglazed clay.
Bronze: Copper + tin alloy.
Brass: Copper + zinc alloy.
Leaded bronze: Bronze with lead.
Cire-perdue: Lost-wax casting.
Core: Clay inside a hollow casting.
Sprue: Channel for metal.
Chasing: Finishing metal surface.
Striations: Fine parallel lines.
Granulation: Tiny raised dots.
Plaque: Flat relief panel.
Flange: Projecting base rim.

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