Ifa Divination Tray (Opon Ifa)

Yoruba people, Nigeria, late 19th/early 20th c.

Carved wood

13.25” h x 13.38 d (33.66 x 40 cm)

Price: $900

 
 

Trays like this example were used by Yoruba priests for the purpose of divination. The figure on the top is Eshu, the trickster god of the Yoruba. The other carvings reference aspects of Yoruba cosmology and the divinatory arts. Signs of heavy use are obvious.