15th Century Style Antique Life-Size Bronze Head in the Ife Court Style, Nigeria, Africa

A striking life-size bronze head of a dignitary, crowned with a traditional Yoruba headdress and plume, its surface finely worked with the characteristic vertical striations that symbolise beauty, refinement, and spiritual authority. The modelling is confident and expressive, with the calm, composed features characteristic of royal portraiture from the ancient city of Ife.

The piece draws directly on the celebrated sculptural tradition of Ife, the sacred royal centre of the Yoruba people in south‑western Nigeria. From the 11th to the 15th century, Ife produced some of the most accomplished naturalistic portrait heads in world art — cast in bronze or created in terracotta — which astonished early European archaeologists with their realism and technical sophistication.

Historically, these heads represented Ooni (kings) and high dignitaries. They were mounted atop wooden effigies, dressed in full regalia, and used during commemorative funerary rites before being interred near the royal palace. The tradition remains one of Africa’s most important artistic legacies.

This later interpretation captures the dignity and presence of those earlier works, with a strong sculptural silhouette and excellent decorative impact.

Provenance: Nigeria, Africa. In the 15th-century style. 

Original 12th–15th century Ife bronzes are national treasures and do not circulate on the open market. — the masterpieces that inspire works like this — are held in major museum collections worldwide, including:

The British Museum, London

The National Museum, Lagos

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

The Musée du Quai Branly, Paris

The National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Nigeria

These institutions regard the Ife corpus as one of the pinnacles of African bronze casting, comparable in sophistication to classical antiquity.

Material: Bronze. Manufactured by the lost wax process.

Condition: Good, with small signs of age and handling. Presented on an ebonised plinth base.

Dimensions: Height: 48 cm (approx. 18.9 inches) Width: 22 cm (approx. 8.6 inches)