Benin Bronze Plaques Continue

1565

In the kingdom of Benin, in what is now Nigeria, guild craftsmen continued producing elaborate brass and ivory plaques depicting the royal court, warriors, and Portuguese traders. The bronzes adorned the palace of the oba and would, centuries later, become some of the most contested artifacts in European museums. The bronzes' sophistication challenged European assumptions about African civilization when first studied by Western scholars in the late nineteenth century.