Figs. 132 and 133.--Small head of boy, in bronze, with three raised
tribal marks over each eye, and two vertical marks on forehead.
Head-dress with crest.
Fig. 134.--Figures in bronze, representing two rude human figures, male
and female, attending an animal, probably a bear. A plate, or board, of
three rows of circles with ten circles in each row, is laid out before
the figures, and is perhaps a game of mancala, of which examples are
seen in Plate XX, Fig. 116, and Plate XXVIII, Figs. 184 and 185. The
female figure has very large anklets, and her hands are spread upon
her stomach. The hair is plaited and ornamented with knobs, resembling
a Mexican pottery figure in this collection. The hair of the male
figure is plaited and turned over on the left side, and he is sitting
cross-legged. His left arm and hand are spread upon the bear, and he
has a rod in the right hand. A burnt core of sand is seen under the
thin metal pedestal.
Fig. 135.--Brass bottle, hung by chain, and ornamented with
representation of twisted twine, and a guilloche pattern without
pellets round the swell. The rings for hanging it are similar to those
on the powder flask, Figs. 56 and 57, Plate IX. A similar brass bottle,
but smaller, is represented in Plate XXXV, Fig. 267.
Figs. 137 and 138.--A very rude head of bronze; probably used as the
stand for a carved tusk. Four tribal marks over each eye; the eyes
projecting like those of Figs. 265-6, Plate 35. This is the rudest head
in the collection.
Fig. 139.--A cylindrical stand of bronze, for carved tusks,
representing on the outside four female figures standing, with bands
of upright interlaced strap-work between. All the figures are holding
objects in their hands. One holds a bird, another a sistrum, which is
being beaten with a stick; the rest are broken. Two of the bands of
interlaced strap-work are of thin repoussé work, and nailed on with
bronze nails. The base and top are ornamented with looped straps,
similar to No. 140. All the figures have three incised tribal marks
over the eyes, and crested head-gear. A vertical hole for the carved
tusk runs down the centre, like those in all the human heads.
Fig. 140.--Armlet of brass, pierced work, ornamented with bands of
looped straps, similar to Fig. 139, and two bands of concentric
semicircles alternating with Maltese crosses. Around the centre is a
band of broken guilloche pattern, forming a transitional link between
the guilloche, and a peculiar floral ornament common to Benin art. The
representation of European screw-heads forms part of the ornamentation,
and raised eyelets alternate with the screw-head ornaments.
Fig. 141.--Armlet of copper, ornamented with horizontal human heads of
brass. The head-dresses are ornamented with fish-scale pattern, and the
hair is combed out straight. The heads alternate with double-coiled
mud-fish, resembling Fig. 276, Plate XXXVI. It is not quite easy to
understand how this work was done. Both the copper and the brass appear
to have been formed by casting.