Igbin drum / Trommel Yoruba, Nigeria

"The Ìgbìn drum was used throughout Yorubaland and the socio-religious role of the drum is infused in many segments of Yoruba ritual, civic, and spiritual practice. Without the music of the Ìgbìn drums most funerals, festivals, and incantations at ceremonies would have been incomplete or impossible (...). All drums in the Ìgbìn drum family represent, historically, the bridge between domains both sacred and secular."
Excerpt from: Tamara De Silva, Symbols and Ritual: The Socio-Religious Role of the Igbin Drum Family.

"These drums, the Ìgbìn set, are used in the cult of Obàtálá and are single-membrane drums with peg bracing, played with a single straight stick held in the right hand whilst the left hand is used to regulate the tone. The body of the Ìgbìn drum may be cylindrical, barrel-shaped, biconical, or carved in human form."
Excerpt from: Frank Willett, A Contribution to the History of Musical Instruments among the Yoruba. 1977.

This figurative Ìgbìn drum represents one different variants of the drum family. The cylindrical body is carved as a standing human figure whose face occupies almost the entire upper section of the instrument. The reduced arms, the stylized beard, and the symmetrical facial features emphasize the anthropomorphic character of the sculpture.

Particularly remarkable are the extensive traces of sacrificial use visible around the head and the tuning pegs. The thick encrustations indicate repeated ritual offerings and prolonged use within a ceremonial context. Such traces are important material evidence of the active religious life of the instrument and document its role within the cult of Obàtálá.

H: 120 cm

Bibliography:
Beier, Ulli: Three Igbin Drums from Igbomina. 1963.
Beier, Ulli: Obatala Festival. In: Nigeria 52. 1956.
Dagan, Esther A.: Drums – The Heartbeat of Africa. 1993.
De Silva, Tamara: Symbols and Ritual: The Socio-Religious Role of the Igbin Drum Family.
King, Anthony: Yoruba Sacred Music from Ekiti. Ibadan 1961.
Kubik, Gerhard: Musikgeschichte in Bildern – Westafrika. Leipzig 1989.
Laoye I. Timi von Ede: Yoruba Drums. 1959.
Meyer, Andreas: Afrikanische Trommeln – West- und Zentralafrika. Berlin 1997.
Ortiz, Fernando: Los instrumentos de la música afrocubana. Havana 1952.
Thieme, Darius: A Descriptive Catalogue of Yoruba Musical Instruments. Washington D.C. 1969.
Wieschhoff, Heinz: Die afrikanischen Trommeln und ihre außerafrikanischen Beziehungen. Stuttgart 1933.
Willett, Frank: A Contribution to the History of Musical Instruments among the Yoruba. 1977.