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Construction of the ancestral shrine house, Mma obu (ancestor-rest house), in Ezi Akputa compound, Mgbom village, Afikpo Village-Group, Nigeria

African Art Museum

Construction of the ancestral shrine house, Mma obu (ancestor-rest house), in Ezi Akputa compound, Mgbom village, Afikpo Village-Group, Nigeria
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Object Details

sova.eepa.2000-007_ref726
GUID
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/xo74dc82eb0-2434-4ee4-9193-a2434981f9f6
Local Numbers
O-247/1951-1953 EEPA 2000-070218
General
Title source: Dr. Simon Ottenberg, Professor Emeritus of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA.
Photographer
Ottenberg, Simon
Collection Photographer
Ottenberg, Simon
Place
Africa
Nigeria
Topic
Cultural landscapes
Religious buildings
Shrines
Photographer
Ottenberg, Simon
Culture
Igbo (African people)
See more items in
Simon Ottenberg photographs
Extent
1 Slide (col.)
Date
1951-1953
Custodial History
Donated by Simon Ottenberg, 2000.
Archival Repository
Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art
Identifier
EEPA.2000-007, Item EEPA 2000-007-0218
Type
Archival materials
Slides
Color slides
Collection Rights
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
Genre/Form
Color slides
Scope and Contents
This photograph was taken by Dr. Simon Ottenberg while conducting field research at Afikpo village-group, southeastern Nigeria, from December 1951 to March 1953.
Original title reads, "Reconstruction of the ancestral rest house (obu) in Ezi Akputa compound, Mgbom Village. Setting the pillars, obu construction." [Ottenberg field research notes, O Series, December 1951-March 1953].
"A short distance inside the compound entrance is the ancestral shrine of the lineage founder, Mma obu (ancestor-rest house), which also serves as a rest house and meeting place for the lineage elders, and near which is a small cleared area used for meetings and feasts. The founder's house is believed to have been located where the shrine stands and his body to be buried beneath it, and the spirits of the male ancestors of the major patrilineage, Nde mma (people-ancestors or spirits), are said to reside in the shrine. The uke ekpe grade, the executive arm of the lineage elders, is responsible for rebuilding the ancestral shrine house, the fashion nowdays is to use cement blocks and galvanized iron roofs, but only after receiving assurances from a diviner that the ancestral spirits will not be offended by this bit of modernity. The uke ekpe sees that the necessary communal work is carried out, that any contractor involved is paid, and that sacrifices to the appropriate shrines are performed so that the ancestral spirits will not be upset by the rebuilding." [Ottenberg S., 1968: Double Descent in an African Society; the Afikpo Village-Group. University of Washington Press].
Collection Restrictions
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Other Archival Materials
Simon Ottenberg Papers are located at the National Anthropological Archives, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.
EEPA.2000-007_ref726
Large EAD
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/xo74dc82eb0-2434-4ee4-9193-a2434981f9f6
EEPA.2000-007
EEPA
Record ID
ebl-1536864686513-1536864686742-4

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