A Set of Seven Delta State Ofo Objects

Ofo are widespread among the Igbo peoples of Nigeria, constituting at once an ancient tradition and a contemporary marker of identity. But what kind of object is the ofo? It has been called a staff, because when offering prayers or oaths, the owner holds one in the right hand; it is a portable altar that can be part of a shrine, where it gets offerings of chewed kola nuts and animal blood; and it is the material expression of ancestral authority that links a person to his or her forebears. Virtually all Igbo religious and political activities involve the ritual use of ofo. These objects come in many forms and materials, from bundles of sacred twigs (see below), to intricate copper alloy castings of various shapes, or anthropomorphic constructions that combine wood and iron elements. 

The object gets its name from the sacred ofo tree (Detarium senegalense), which sheds its branches. The knotty twigs resemble a human bone, and are comparable to a forearm and cupped hand. This form seems to have inspired the stem body and circular head of the basic copper alloy ofo, which, in turn, was elaborated into more complex shapes. The bundle of twigs appears to be at the origin of the wood-and-iron anthropomorphic forms. All kinds, whether cast or carved and decorated, are highly individualized, and no two ofo are the same.

The Clayton Collection includes three different types of cast bronze ofo, and two types of wood-and-iron ofo assemblages, which are found among distinct Igbo groups. These seven specimens come from the most western part of Igboland, located west of the Niger River in the Delta State. Some are just heads, others have a short trunk, and all are wider and bulkier than the more common ofo wood staffs that come from the Anambra River region. They stand on three or four thin iron legs, and three are Janus-faced, both of which are atypical features. Body and head are decorated by iron bands or wire in various patterns and a semicircular iron corona. On most of these ofo, repeated offerings and libations have caused the metal to corrode and the wood to decay.

Basic copper-alloy ofo

Mark’s note:

Most of these wood-and-iron figures were acquired from Daniel Picq, who said he collected them in Delta State, Nigeria.  Two or three were so rancid that I had to reluctantly throw them away.  Statues 2, 3, and 6 (from left to right) are Janus-faced.