ARTICLE 1b. An overview of the powerful symbol of the tower, the brass serpent and the bird of prophesy as landmark at various gates in the city.
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Ibokpor n’ Okhua : Royal Authority, Spiritual Symbol and Artistry The powerful symbol of the tower, the brass serpent and the bird of prophesy ( " AHIANMWẸ ỌRRỌỌ" - BIRD THAT NEUTRALIZES SHOCK ) was a landmark before any of the invaders reached the shores of the Benin Empire. The tower was largely an elongated framework built from an inlay of wood, mud (a highly effective cooling architectural device and material) and straw over which scales of plaques are laid. This particular architectural structure known as Ibokpor n’ Okhua served as one of the many gates of the palace at Benin City and depicts a sacred snake moving downwards over a set of plaques lined in a turret with baked clay shingles above which stands the Bird of Prophesy. Other interpretations, which includes the Ahianmwe Orroo as the neutralizer of thunder, indicates structural, architectural use of the symbol as both meaning, location and application. Such as, the location of the bird being both symbol and indi...
INTRODUCTION During the reign of Oba Ovonramwen, Benin City, the administrative centre of the kingdom of Benin (formerly Benin Empire) was invaded, looted and destroyed by the British. The attack on the kingdom was ostensibly response to the defeat of a previous attempt by palace knights. The main motivation however was for the English to finally put out of the way the legitimate kingdom and nation standing in the way of colonization of ‘The Niger Delta Region’, also termed ‘the South Protectorate’. The year was 1896, the European TransAtlantic Slave Trade was no longer profitable and its masters were all 7 of them vying to become colonial masters of African resources. The scramble was about to happen. The assault on Benin by British forces became known euphemistically as ‘The Benin Expedition of 1897’. Much of the art and ancient artefacts, including the now famous plaques, were either destroyed or looted by the British forces, and the long journey of the matter of the return of the s...