Accession Number
2005/1.250

Title
Ifa divination tapper

Artist(s)
Yoruba

Artist Nationality
Yoruba (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
Early 20th century

Medium & Support
ivory and metal

Dimensions
12 3/16 in x 1 15/16 in x 1 1/8 in (31 cm x 4.95 cm x 2.8 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Candis and Helmut Stern

Subject matter
Before a babaláwo, or diviner, began the process of divination or Ifa, a tapper was used on the divination tray to call Orunmila, the god of wisdom responsible for divination (cf. Doris, Yoruba Images and Aesthetics, 2004, p.8). Usually made from wood or ivory, the tapper, called iroke ifa, was also used to add rhythm to the babaláwo's chants. The form of the tapper helped invoke Orunmila through the stance of the woman carved in the middle, whose kneeling position, ikunle, was a gesture of respect. The conical shape also recalled ibori, the shrine to the inner head, or ade, an oba's crown (cf. Lawal, Yoruba, 2012, p. 42). Both were associated with ori inu, a person's inner head that held great power, or ase (cf. Drewal, Yoruba: Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought, 1989, p. 26). Just as Yoruba peoples sought the knowledge of their personal destiny (housed in their ori inu), the diviner also used the head of the tapper to gain knowledge of the universe through divination (cf. Drewal, Yoruba: Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought, 1989, p. 32; Lawal, Yoruba, 2012, p. 42).

Physical Description
A slightly curved rod, wider at the top while the bottom comes to a rounded point. In the middle is a figure of a woman kneeling and holding her breasts in her hands. There is also a nail near to the top of the object. 

Primary Object Classification
Sculpture

Primary Object Type
carving

Collection Area
African

Rights
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Keywords
communication (function)
divination objects
knowledge
power