Yorùbá
Ifa Divination Tapper (Iroke Ifa)
Yoruba, 1900-1932
Scroll
Yorùbá
Ifa Divination Tapper (Iroke Ifa)
Yoruba, 1900-1932
Physical Qualities
Ivory, 12 in. (30.5 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Alan Wurtzburger
Object Number
1954.145.39
Delicately knocking this tapper on a sculpted divination board, an Ifa divination specialist called the attention of the spiritual world. The fine material—a smooth, polished ivory—suggests that the owner was successful in helping his clients resolve problems and receive advice for the future. The woman depicted in the center sits in a restful posture, yet her eyes are open wide and her feet are poised for action, much like a supplicant asking for advice from the orisas, the gods of the Yoruba pantheon.
"The Wurtzburger Collection of African Sculpture," Jan 12, 1954-Feb 14, 1954, BMA, cat. 39, ill. p. 21.
"Wurtzburger Collection," June 21, 1954-Aug 31, 1954, School of Advanced Studies, Johns Hopkins University.
"African Sculpture," Oct 8, 1954-Nov 7, 1954, Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester.
"Social Rite and Personal Delight: African Art from Baltimore Collections," June 17, 1975-Aug 3, 1975, BMA, cat 35.
"The Best of Fifty," Mar 22, 1977-May 8, 1977, The Taft Museum, Cincinnati.
African Reinstallation, "Public Art," April 2015, Wurtzburger Galleries, BMA, Kathryn Gunsch.
"Wurtzburger Collection," June 21, 1954-Aug 31, 1954, School of Advanced Studies, Johns Hopkins University.
"African Sculpture," Oct 8, 1954-Nov 7, 1954, Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester.
"Social Rite and Personal Delight: African Art from Baltimore Collections," June 17, 1975-Aug 3, 1975, BMA, cat 35.
"The Best of Fifty," Mar 22, 1977-May 8, 1977, The Taft Museum, Cincinnati.
African Reinstallation, "Public Art," April 2015, Wurtzburger Galleries, BMA, Kathryn Gunsch.
K. R. Greenfield, 'The Museum: Its First Half Century,' 'Annual I,' BMA, 1966, ill. p. 78. Frederick Lamp, 'African Art at The Baltimore Museum of Art,' 'African Arts,' vol. XVII, no. 1, Nov. 1983.
Frederick Lamp, 'Baltimore's African Art Collection,' 'Topic' (USIF), no. 155, pp. 30-36, ill. p. 35.
Frederick John Lamp, "See the Music Hear the Dance: Rethinking African Art at the Baltimore Museum of Art." New York: Prestel, 2003, p.109, ill.
