Horse and Rider
Artist: Yoruba Peoples
Date: Early 20th century
Dimensions:
H. 17 3/4 in. (45.1 cm), W: 7 in. (17.8 cm), L. 15 1/8 in. (38.4 cm).
Medium: Carved wood.
Place of Origin: Repubic of Benin
Classification: Sculpture
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 1973.11
Label Text:In Yoruba sculpture, images of riders refer to the important role of cavalry in kings’ military campaigns from the 16th through the 18th centuries. In the late 18th and 19th centuries only Yoruba chiefs and their retainers could own and ride horses, but the theme persists as a rich metaphor for ideas about status, control, and access to supernatural powers. Some Yoruba gods are represented through riding metaphors, such as Shango, the God of Thunder and Lightning, who “rides fire like a horse.” Ogun, God of Iron and Warfare, is also implicit to equestrian images associated with warfare.
Not on view
In Collection(s)