Yoruba Iron Osanyin Staff, C. 1900

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To cure mental and physical ailments, Yoruba priests and diviners invoke the aid of Osanyin, the god of herbal medicines. … Read more To cure mental and physical ailments, Yoruba priests and diviners invoke the aid of Osanyin, the god of herbal medicines. Used in divination rituals to cure the afflicted, this iron staff is crowned with a large bird encircled by a ring of smaller ones, a powerful symbol of Osanyin's ability to control spirits and supernatural forces to heal and protect. The hand-forged staff depicts the larger bird with wings spread in flight, above the smaller birds that radiate out as emissaries of Osanyin's healing powers. Expressive and dynamic, the staff seems to take flight minimally mounted on a discrete custom steel base. See less