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University of Notre Dame
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Adenla, Great Sacred Crown

Date

early to mid-20th century

Creator

Unrecorded Yoruba artist

Location

Raclin Murphy Museum of Art

The great sacred crown, or adenla, was the most important representation of the power of Yoruba kings and queens in Nigeria. The Yoruba believed that àse, or divine life force, resided in the head. Since the crown encapsulated and elongated the head, the king or queen was no longer simply human when wearing it. A crowned ruler was thus a powerful mediator between the physical world and the spiritual world. On this adenla, the birds represent the mystical powers of women. The faces represent royal ancestors and the continuation of the divine royal line. When not in use, the adenla was treated as a living spiritual being and kept in a sacred shrine.

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The great sacred crown, or adenla, was the most important representation of the power of Yoruba kings and queens in Nigeria. The Yoruba believed that àse, or divine life force, resided in the head. Since the crown encapsulated and elongated the head, the king or queen was no longer simply human when wearing it. A crowned ruler was thus a powerful mediator between the physical world and the spiritual world. On this adenla, the birds represent the mystical powers of women. The faces represent royal ancestors and the continuation of the divine royal line. When not in use, the adenla was treated as a living spiritual being and kept in a sacred shrine.
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  • The great sacred crown, or adenla, was the most important representation of the power of Yoruba kings and queens in Nigeria. The Yoruba believed that àse, or divine life force, resided in the head. Since the crown encapsulated and elongated the head, the king or queen was no longer simply human when wearing it. A crowned ruler was thus a powerful mediator between the physical world and the spiritual world. On this adenla, the birds represent the mystical powers of women. The faces represent royal ancestors and the continuation of the divine royal line. When not in use, the adenla was treated as a living spiritual being and kept in a sacred shrine.
  • The great sacred crown, or adenla, was the most important representation of the power of Yoruba kings and queens in Nigeria. The Yoruba believed that àse, or divine life force, resided in the head. Since the crown encapsulated and elongated the head, the king or queen was no longer simply human when wearing it. A crowned ruler was thus a powerful mediator between the physical world and the spiritual world. On this adenla, the birds represent the mystical powers of women. The faces represent royal ancestors and the continuation of the divine royal line. When not in use, the adenla was treated as a living spiritual being and kept in a sacred shrine.
  • The great sacred crown, or adenla, was the most important representation of the power of Yoruba kings and queens in Nigeria. The Yoruba believed that àse, or divine life force, resided in the head. Since the crown encapsulated and elongated the head, the king or queen was no longer simply human when wearing it. A crowned ruler was thus a powerful mediator between the physical world and the spiritual world. On this adenla, the birds represent the mystical powers of women. The faces represent royal ancestors and the continuation of the divine royal line. When not in use, the adenla was treated as a living spiritual being and kept in a sacred shrine.
  • The great sacred crown, or adenla, was the most important representation of the power of Yoruba kings and queens in Nigeria. The Yoruba believed that àse, or divine life force, resided in the head. Since the crown encapsulated and elongated the head, the king or queen was no longer simply human when wearing it. A crowned ruler was thus a powerful mediator between the physical world and the spiritual world. On this adenla, the birds represent the mystical powers of women. The faces represent royal ancestors and the continuation of the divine royal line. When not in use, the adenla was treated as a living spiritual being and kept in a sacred shrine.
  • The great sacred crown, or adenla, was the most important representation of the power of Yoruba kings and queens in Nigeria. The Yoruba believed that àse, or divine life force, resided in the head. Since the crown encapsulated and elongated the head, the king or queen was no longer simply human when wearing it. A crowned ruler was thus a powerful mediator between the physical world and the spiritual world. On this adenla, the birds represent the mystical powers of women. The faces represent royal ancestors and the continuation of the divine royal line. When not in use, the adenla was treated as a living spiritual being and kept in a sacred shrine.
Unrecorded Yoruba artist
early to mid-20th century
Jewelry
Glass beads, cotton cloth and string, wood, plant fiber
2007.039
ancestors
Aves
crowns
faces
masks
Nigerian
Oyo
Yoruba
Raclin Murphy Museum: 101
40 x 8 3/4 x 8 3/8 in. (101.6 x 22.23 x 21.27 cm)
Lake Family Endowment for the Arts of the Americas, Africa and Oceania

Our collection information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. If you have spotted an error, please contact Raclin Murphy Museum of Art at RMMACollections@nd.edu.