Two cylindrical brass stools cast for Oba Esigie and Oba Eresoyen represented the highest expression of royal authority in the Benin Kingdom during the 16th and 18th centuries. These objects, known as erhe in the Edo language, functioned as coronation thrones through which newly installed rulers gained favor with ancestral spirits and affirmed their legitimacy to govern. The Eresoyen stool, commissioned between 1735 and 1750, deliberately replicated the earlier Esigie example from approximately 1504 to 1550, creating visual and spiritual connection between the two reigns and asserting continuity of royal power. Both stools measure approximately 40 centimeters in height and diameter, their cylindrical forms composed of elaborately decorated seats supported by bases depicting cosmological and political symbolism. British soldiers looted these throne stools during the February 1897 military assault on Benin City, removing them to Europe where they eventually entered the Ethnological Museum in Berlin. German authorities returned both stools to Nigeria in December 2022, and in May 2024 they were formally presented to Oba Ewuare II at the palace in Benin City, restoring objects essential to coronation rituals after 127 years of absence.
Material and Craftsmanship
The Igun Eronmwon guild cast the throne stools using the lost-wax technique, the same method employed for commemorative heads, plaques, and other brass regalia. The brass composition consisted primarily of copper alloyed with zinc, obtained through trade with European merchants who imported manillas, horseshoe-shaped brass bracelets manufactured in the Rhineland region of Germany. Portuguese traders introduced manillas to Benin after establishing direct maritime contact in 1485, and these metal imports became the primary raw material for the kingdom's bronze casting industry.
The casting process for throne stools presented exceptional technical challenges due to their complex three-dimensional forms and intricate surface decoration. Artisans first created a clay core slightly smaller than the intended final object, then covered this core with beeswax. The wax layer was built up to approximately 3 to 6 millimeters thickness, establishing the stool's wall dimensions. Every decorative element, from miniature human figures to geometric patterns, cosmological symbols, and representations of ritual implements, was modeled in wax with meticulous attention to detail.
The decoration required constructing separate wax elements, then attaching them to the basic form using heat to fuse the pieces together. Individual components including Portuguese figures, serpents, frogs, mudfish, ceremonial swords, blacksmith tools, and other symbolic objects were shaped independently before integration into the overall composition. This additive technique allowed extraordinary complexity in the finished casting, transforming the stool's surface into a three-dimensional encyclopedia of Benin cosmology and political authority.
After completing the wax model, casters applied multiple layers of fine clay mixed with organic materials over the entire assembly, creating an outer mold. Channels were left open at strategic points to allow wax drainage and metal flow. The assembly was dried thoroughly, then heated to melt out the wax, leaving a hollow cavity between the inner core and outer mold matching every detail of the original model.
Molten brass heated to approximately 1000 degrees Celsius was poured into the cavity. The metal filled the space formerly occupied by wax, replicating even the finest decorative elements. The weight of brass required for these substantial objects necessitated careful calculation of metal quantities and precise control of pouring to ensure complete filling without creating air pockets or cold joints that would weaken the structure.
After cooling for several hours, casters broke away the outer clay mold and removed the inner core, revealing the finished stool. Surface finishing involved filing away rough edges where casting channels had been attached, smoothing seams where different poured sections joined, and polishing the brass to desired luster. The extensive labor invested in modeling, casting, and finishing such complex objects demonstrated the Oba's command over both material resources and specialized craftspeople.
Form and Features
The throne stools exhibit cylindrical construction divided into two main sections: a seat at the top and a base connected by an entwined python that physically and symbolically links the divine order of civilization with the natural world. This serpentine element spirals around the stool's midsection, its body creating a visual transition between the cosmic realm represented above and the terrestrial forest depicted below.
The Eresoyen stool's seat displays elaborate cosmological imagery. At the center appears what has been identified as a Maltese cross, though its interpretation relates to indigenous Edo concepts rather than European Christian symbolism. Adjacent to this central motif sits a representation of the sun, signifying the creation of cosmic order and the Oba's role as earthly manifestation of divine authority. A crescent moon appears alongside the sun, documenting awareness of celestial cycles and their incorporation into royal iconography. These astronomical elements asserted the Oba's connection to forces governing time, seasons, and agricultural productivity.
Ceremonial swords called eben appear in relief on the seat surface. These leaf-shaped weapons functioned as emblems of leadership carried by the Oba and principal chiefs during palace ceremonies. Their presence on the throne stool referenced the monarch's military authority and capacity to maintain order through armed force when necessary. The swords' placement on the seat, the section physically contacted by the Oba's body during coronation rites, created direct association between the ruler's person and instruments of power.
The center of the stool features blacksmith tools including anvil, bellows, pliers, and hammer. These implements represent human civilization, technological innovation, and the transformation of raw materials into useful objects. Metalworking held special significance in Edo thought as a civilizing activity that distinguished organized society from the wilderness. The tools' prominent placement asserted the Oba's role as guarantor of social order and economic productivity.
The base depicts motifs from the forest realm, creating visual contrast with the ordered civilization shown above. Monkeys appear in positions suggesting sacrifice, their bodies contorted in ways indicating violent death. These representations document ritual practices where animals served as offerings to supernatural forces. The inclusion of sacrificial imagery on the throne stool referenced the Oba's role as chief priest responsible for maintaining relationships with deities and ancestors through blood offerings.
The trunk-hand motif appears on the base, showing an elephant's trunk terminating in a human hand holding leaves. This hybrid element symbolized the occult power of Osun, supernatural forces residing in plants that could be manipulated for protective or harmful purposes. The elephant component referenced strength and wisdom, attributes desired in rulers, while the hand indicated human agency and accomplishment. The leaves represented medicinal or magical plants whose properties empowered those possessing knowledge of their use.
Frogs appear on the stool's base, their forms cast with naturalistic attention to anatomical details. These amphibians referenced the water realm controlled by Olokun, the ocean deity associated with prosperity from maritime trade. Portuguese contact had dramatically enriched Benin through commerce in pepper, ivory, cloth, and enslaved persons, making Olokun worship increasingly important to royal legitimacy. The frogs' placement on a coronation throne asserted that the new Oba would maintain profitable relationships with European traders.
Portuguese figures carved in relief document direct European involvement in Benin's economy and artistic production. These representations show characteristic features including beards, long hair, distinctive European clothing, and sometimes weapons or trade goods. Their presence on a throne stool honored the commercial relationships that provided the brass metal used in the stool's own fabrication, creating self-referential acknowledgment of European trade's importance to Benin material culture.
Function and Use
Throne stools functioned primarily during coronation ceremonies when newly designated Obas underwent rituals transforming them from princes into sacred monarchs. The process involved multiple stages conducted over several days, with the coronation stool playing essential roles in specific rites. The candidate sat upon the stool while priests performed sacrifices and recited prayers connecting him to ancestral spirits of previous rulers. This physical contact transferred sacred power accumulated in the object to the new Oba's body, legitimizing his authority through material and spiritual means simultaneously.
The iconography covering the stool's surfaces served didactic functions, instructing the new ruler about his responsibilities and sources of power. The cosmological symbols on the seat reminded him of divine sanction underlying his authority. The ceremonial swords referenced military obligations to defend the kingdom. The blacksmith tools indicated duties to promote economic prosperity and technological advancement. The forest imagery warned of chaotic forces requiring constant vigilance and ritual management. The Portuguese figures documented reliance on European trade for wealth and weapons.
The stools remained in palace custody between coronations, stored in restricted chambers accessible only to authorized personnel. Their removal from common view enhanced their sacred status, transforming them from functional furniture into repositories of accumulated ancestral power. Each successive coronation added spiritual potency to the objects, making them increasingly important to royal legitimacy as generations passed.
Oba Eresoyen's decision to commission a replica of Esigie's 16th-century throne stool carried significant political implications. By deliberately modeling his coronation throne on an earlier example, Eresoyen asserted continuity with Esigie's reign, one of the most successful periods in Benin history. Esigie had defeated his brother in civil war, repelled foreign invasion from the Igala kingdom, expanded territorial control, and strengthened royal authority over troublesome courtiers. Eresoyen ruled during the early 18th century, a period when Benin was recovering from succession struggles and wars that had weakened the court and devastated royal finances. By linking his reign visually and spiritually to Esigie's Golden Age, Eresoyen claimed similar capabilities and divine favor.
The tradition of viewing Ozolua and Esigie as two of the most important kings in Benin history began with Akenzua I and Eresoyen, who deliberately promoted this historical interpretation to legitimize their own reigns. The throne stool served this political agenda by creating permanent material evidence of connections between 18th-century rulers and glorious 16th-century predecessors.
Cultural Context
The Kingdom of Benin reached its greatest territorial extent and wealth during the 15th and 16th centuries when Esigie ruled. Military conquests expanded the kingdom's boundaries, subjecting neighboring peoples to tribute obligations. Portuguese contact established lucrative maritime trade exchanging European manufactured goods for African commodities. This commercial prosperity enabled unprecedented artistic patronage, funding elaborate bronze casting programs including commemorative heads, relief plaques, and royal regalia such as throne stools.
The Igun Eronmwon guild maintained hereditary monopoly over brass casting for royal patrons. Membership passed from fathers to sons within families, creating lineages of specialized craftspeople whose technical knowledge accumulated across generations. The guild's location in a dedicated quarter of Benin City, still called Igun Street today, concentrated metalworking expertise under direct Oba control. This organizational structure paralleled European guild systems while differing in one crucial aspect: Benin guilds answered exclusively to royal authority rather than operating as semi-independent merchant corporations.
The theological framework underlying Benin kingship emphasized the Oba's role as intermediary between human and spiritual realms. His physical body concentrated mystical forces protecting the kingdom from supernatural threats and human enemies. Annual ceremonies including the Igue festival renewed these powers through sacrifice and ritual. The brass throne stools functioned within this cosmology as material vessels containing ancestral power that could be transferred to new rulers during coronation rites.
The cylindrical form of throne stools referenced a type of round, legless stool commonly used by Edo people for seating. By elevating this vernacular furniture form into sacred regalia through brass casting and elaborate decoration, the Oba appropriated familiar objects and transformed them into exclusive symbols of monarchical authority. Commoners and chiefs used wooden stools for daily activities, but only the Oba sat upon brass thrones linking him to cosmic forces and ancestral spirits.
The extensive European imagery on Eresoyen's stool documents how thoroughly Portuguese, Dutch, English, and French commercial relationships had integrated into Benin political economy by the 18th century. The kingdom's wealth derived substantially from controlling trade routes and taxing commerce. European traders provided brass manillas that became both currency and raw material for artistic production. This economic interdependence shaped iconographic programs decorating royal regalia, where Portuguese figures appeared alongside indigenous deities and symbols as essential components of the kingdom's prosperity.
Discovery and Preservation
British forces under Admiral Harry Rawson invaded Benin City on February 18, 1897, following the January massacre of Acting Consul-General James Robert Phillips and most of his delegation. Phillips had attempted to enter the city during the annual Igue festival despite warnings that the Oba was ritually prohibited from meeting foreigners during this sacred period. The British military response resulted in palace looting, removal of an estimated 10,000 objects including the throne stools, and systematic burning of the city.
The dispersal of looted materials proceeded through multiple channels. Admiral Rawson distributed objects among expedition members according to military rank. Some pieces were auctioned in London during summer 1897 to offset expedition costs. Ralph Moor, British High Commissioner for the Protectorate of Southern Nigeria, acquired the two throne stools along with numerous other brass objects. After Moor died in September 1909, his wife Adrienne Burns inherited his collection. Following her death in 1919, the collection passed to various heirs and eventually entered the art market.
The throne stools were acquired by German museums, becoming part of the extensive Benin collections in Berlin. These materials had been purchased eagerly by German institutions around 1900, whereas British museums typically lacked sufficient funds to compete for the most significant pieces during this period.
Oba Eweka II made the first formal request for return of the throne stools in 1914, shortly after the British permitted restoration of the monarchy following Ovonramwen's exile and death. This initial appeal was denied, as colonial authorities considered the stools valuable spoils of war. In 1933, Oba Akenzua II repeated the request during his coronation, arguing that the stools were necessary for proper ritual procedures. This appeal was also rejected.
Oba Akenzua II initiated sustained repatriation efforts beginning in February 1935 when he met Ivor Windsor-Clive, the 2nd Earl of Plymouth and Under Secretary to the British Colonies. Akenzua leveraged his education and understanding of both Western and Benin administrative systems to pursue formal demands through diplomatic channels. His efforts involved communications with auction houses including Stevens and Sotheby's, correspondence with British Colonial Office officials, and negotiations with German museum authorities.
By October 1935, British officials confirmed that the throne stools were held in German museums, likely in Berlin. In February 1936, German art historian Eckart von Sydow verified that illustrations of the stools appeared in Felix von Luschan's Altertümer von Benin published in 1919. Negotiations began with the Berlin State Museums, but German authorities were unwilling to release the original stools.
William Ockelford Oldman, a British art collector and dealer familiar with the search for the royal stools, proposed creating replicas. Professor Otto Kümmel, Director General of the Berlin State Museums, approved replica production on the condition that Oba Akenzua II covered the costs. The commissioning was formalized on April 23, 1938, and replicas were delivered to Lagos by January 5, 1939, costing 1,582 Reichsmarks. Whether Akenzua was satisfied with these replicas remains unknown.
On June 17, 1943, English barrister Philip Guedalla initiated another restitution demand on Akenzua's behalf. The British Colonial Office responded that the stools were highly valuable and recommended waiting until after World War II to continue discussions. Subsequent efforts stalled until the early 21st century when renewed international attention focused on broader restitution of Benin objects.
Germany became the first European country to sign a comprehensive restitution agreement in July 2022, committing to return 1,130 objects including the two throne stools. In December 2022, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock formally handed 22 Benin objects including the royal stools to Nigerian Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed. The National Commission for Museums and Monuments received these materials and made the significant decision to return the throne stools to the palace rather than retaining them in museum collections.
In May 2024, Oluigbe Holloway, Director General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments, formally presented the throne stools to Oba Ewuare II in ceremonies at the palace in Benin City. This repatriation restored objects essential to coronation rituals and provided symbolic closure after 127 years of absence. The return acknowledged historical injustices while addressing spiritual concerns about disrupted connections between living rulers and ancestral powers concentrated in the throne stools.
Why It Matters
The Benin brass throne stools document sophisticated metallurgical traditions and cosmological thought systems that integrated celestial observation, forest symbolism, technological innovation, and international commerce into unified political iconography. The deliberate replication of Esigie's 16th-century stool by Eresoyen in the 18th century demonstrates how material culture served historical consciousness and political legitimation, creating visual arguments about dynastic continuity and royal authority. The stools' essential function in coronation rituals transforming princes into sacred monarchs illustrates how physical objects mediated relationships between human rulers and ancestral spirits in precolonial African kingdoms. The violent removal of these throne stools during the 1897 British expedition exemplifies colonial strategies that deliberately targeted ritual objects sustaining indigenous political systems, believing their seizure would break sacred power and facilitate European control. The persistent repatriation efforts beginning with Oba Akenzua II in 1914 and continuing through multiple generations until successful return in 2024 demonstrates the enduring significance of cultural heritage to political legitimacy and spiritual practice in postcolonial African monarchies.