The Igogo festival is a Yoruba festival held in Owo, Nigeria. Its origins began over 600 years ago during the reign of Olowo Rerengejen.
The monarch married Oronsen, a queen who was, unknown to the king, an orisha. She enriched the monarch and she was loved by him as a result. No one was allowed to grind okra (for stew) in her presence or pour water into the yard.
One day, Queen Oronsen had a disagreement with the other wives of the king. They conspired against her with the intention of violating her taboos while Rerengejen was not in the palace. As she was making her escape, some palace guards and chiefs pursued, intending to return her to the palace, an effort that was ultimately futile.
Becoming weary, she stopped at a place called "Ugbo Laja" where she was discovered and attempts were made to persuade her to return to the palace. Her refusal frustrated the guards, who forcefully captured her. But she escaped them and disappeared into "Igbo Oluwa", now a sacred forest, leaving her head ties (oja) at Ugbo Laja. The guards later returned them to King Rerengejen.
A terra cotta sculptured image of Queen Oronsen was excavated from "Igbo Oluwa" by Ekpo Eyo (1931-2011), a Nigerian scholar and anthropologist. Her "image" stood at a distance to inform the Owo people that she will never return to the palace but that annually they should always sacrifice two hundred items of different articles, such as dried fish, colanut, alligator pepper, bitter cola and many more for the ritual (Igogo).
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Terracotta head from Ife, similar to the sculptures found in the region.
Igogo festival lasts for 17 days and begins with Upeli proceedings by the Iloro chiefs. During this procession, beating of drums by individuals or associations is forbidden and the use of caps by men and head ties by women at close range to the Owo monarch, the Olowo of Owo, is also prohibited.
The festival features the dance of bare-chested men, the Iloro Quarter men called Ighares. They often wear white caps with two horns of buffalo in their hands. During this rite, any animal that crosses their paths will be viewed as food. The chiefs braid their hair and dance round the town, and visit their loved ones who give them gifts in return. The monarch often dresses like a woman and dances around the town.
The attire and symbolism within the Igogo festival reflect deep-rooted cultural values and historical narratives. The queen's head ties (oja) left at Ugbo Laja are a significant relic, symbolizing her departure and the beginning of the Igogo ritual. The prohibitions during the Upeli proceedings, such as the ban on drums and specific headwear, underscore the solemnity and respect accorded to the Olowo of Owo.
Furthermore, the dance of the Ighares, the bare-chested men, with their distinctive white caps and buffalo horns, represents strength and virility. The monarch's cross-dressing is a symbolic act, possibly signifying a connection to the divine feminine or a performance of ritual humility.
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Igogo Festival - Owo Kingdom and the celebration of the mythical Queen Oronsen.
To further illustrate the importance of queen mothers in Nigerian culture, we can consider the example of Queen Idia of Benin. This pendant mask was created in the early sixteenth century for an Oba (the king) named Esigie, in honor of his mother Idia. The face has softly modeled, naturalistic features, with graceful curves that echo the oval shape of the head. Iron inlays for the pupils and rims of the eyes intensify the Queen Mother’s authoritative gaze and suggest her inner strength. The two vertical depressions on her forehead were also inlaid with iron.
She is depicted wearing a choker of coral beads and her hair is arranged in an elegant configuration that resembles a tiara. The intricately carved openwork designs are stylized mudfish alternating with the faces of Portuguese traders. Both motifs are associated with the Oba and his counterpart, the sea god Olokun. The mudfish is a creature that lives both on land and in water, and a symbol of the king’s dual nature as both human and divine. Similarly, the Portuguese, as voyagers from across the sea, may have been seen as denizens of Olokun’s realm.
Replica of the ivory mask of Queen Idia
In Benin culture, ivory holds both material and symbolic value. As a luxury good, ivory was Benin’s principal commercial commodity and helped to attract Portuguese traders who, in turn, brought wealth to the kingdom in the form of copper and coral.
Queen Idia is honored as a powerful and politically astute woman who provided critical assistance to her son during the kingdom’s battles to expand. Upon the successful conclusion of the war, Esigie paid tribute to Idia by bestowing upon her the title of Queen Mother, a custom that has continued with subsequent rulers until the present time. The title of Queen Mother, or Iyoba, is given to the woman who bears the Oba’s first son, the future ruler of the kingdom. Historically, the Queen Mother would have no other children and, instead, devote her life to raising her son.
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Oba Esigie is said to have worn the mask as a pectoral during rites commemorating his mother. The hollow back, holes around the perimeter, and stopper composed of several tendrils of hair at the summit suggest that the mask functioned as an amulet, filled with special and powerful materials that protected the wearer.
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