Esiẹ Museum
Established | 1945 |
---|---|
Location | Esiẹ, Kwara State, Nigeria |
Coordinates | 8°11′47″N 4°53′18″E / 8.1963283°N 4.8882082°E |
Founder | Price Baragbon & Adesole Oyo Prince on exile |
Esiẹ Museum is a museum in Esiẹ, Kwara State, Nigeria. rule by King know as Elesie Of Esie
The museum was the first to be established in Nigeria when it opened in 1945.[1] The museum once housed over one thousand tombstone figures or images representing human beings.[2]
It is reputed to have the largest collection of soapstone images in the world.[3] In modern times the Esie museum has been the center of religious activities and hosts a festival in the month of April every year.[4]
The statues were found at Esie by people of the Igbomina sub-grouping of the Yoruba ethnic group when they settled in the Esie area some 300 years ago. The origin of the statues remains unknown. Several areas of soapstone in the Nigerian Schist Belt are considered as potential source areas for the Esie statues.
The figures consisted of men and women mostly sitting on stools; some were kneeling. Most of them wear elaborate coiffures. All the figures have facial marks of three horizontal straight lines between the eyes and the ears. Majority of them wear necklaces and bracelets.
References
[edit]- ^ "(PDF) NIGERIA SCULPTURAL TRADITION AS VIABLE OPTION FOR TOURISM PROMOTION: AN ASSESSMENT OF ESIE MYSTERIOUS STONE SCULPTURES". ResearchGate. Retrieved 2021-01-21.
- ^ "Esie: Nigeria's first museum, generates N10,000 monthly". Daily Trust. Retrieved 2021-01-21.
- ^ "Esie Museum". All Africa. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
- ^ "Tourism". Nigerian Embassy, Budapest, Hungary. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
External links
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