Ire Ibeji Ceremonial Headdress Tribe: Yoruba
Country: Nigeria
Materia: Wood, Pigment
Size: 15" (38 cm) Tall x 19" (48.25 cm) Wide
In earlier times, new-born twins, or ibeji, as they are called, were believed to be evil, monstrous abnormalities and infanticide was a common practice. However, such beliefs and practices were later superseded and reversed, and by the middle of the 18th century twins came to be seen as a blessing; they were awarded the status of minor deities, called Orishas, and their arrival was viewed as an omen of good fortune for the family. By the 19th century the cult of the Ere Ibeji was firmly established and continues to this day. The death of one or both twins is regarded as a great calamity for the family, one which requires immediate appeasement of the soul of the deceased child.
This particular headdress would have been used in Ire Ibeji ceremonial masquerades celebrating twins and the blessing of twins.
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