Benin Plaques
- Gallery: Room 25
- Made in: Benin City
- Date: 16thC-17thC (circa)
- Object type: plaque
- Materials: brass
- Museum number: Af1944,04.10
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is a Benin plaque, a remarkable piece of craftsmanship from the 16th to 17th century. This brass artwork was cast using the lost-wax method—an ancient technique that results in intricate, detailed designs. The plaque is rectangular with decorative side flanges and shows a European figure, likely Portuguese, holding a staff in one hand and a sword in the other. He wears a distinctive layered costume, including a patterned skirt, and has long hair and a beard that reflect his foreign appearance.
Notice the delicate river-leaf patterns and dots that spread across the background — a beautiful contrast to the bold figure in the foreground.
These plaques once adorned the palace of the Oba, the king of Benin City. They were symbols of wealth and royal power. The presence of a European figure suggests a moment of cultural interaction during a time of increasing trade and influence between Benin and foreign powers.
See it in person
Benin Plaques is on display in Room 25 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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