Strange anthropomorphic head modeled in terracotta with an elongated shape. Its form is not completely ovoid or spherical, as it extends further back with a gentle curve, especially at the top, coinciding with a kind of crest. Its stylized design prioritizes length over roundness. The facial features, also stylized, stand out for their wide, arched eyebrows that frame enormous almond-shaped eyes with a straight upper demarcation and perforated pupils. The nose is not well-defined, probably due to wear or stylization; in many Nok figures, the noses are small or barely marked. Furthermore, that area shows volumetric reintegration, the result of partial restoration. The mouth is poorly detailed, barely a horizontal, striated slit, as is the beard below it, which is rectangular in shape. It presents characteristics compatible with a hybrid of human and some animal, as has been found in Nok sculpture.
The surface features incised details for the facial features, indicating a technique of manual work without very precise tools. Granular texture and reddish-brown color, characteristic of the clay used by the Nok.
Intended for use in rituals, these sculptures were possibly placed in sacred houses or temples. The figures represent ancestors or personifications of supernatural powers; it is not known for certain, but one does not exclude the other. Their function would be to ask for help in matters of healing, to serve as offerings for agricultural or commercial benefit, as a magical weapon against enemies, or to be part of some community ritual.
The sculptural sample left to us by the Nok culture is exceptional: complete figures, busts, and heads, made of terracotta. In the former, the disproportion between the head and the rest of the body is enormous, the head stands out considerably as the most important part; in the busts, this disproportion is smaller.
The heads are very diverse, some are ovoid, spherical, elongated, cylindrical, etc. The decoration and size of these give us various sub-styles, however there are a number of common features: thick lips, almond-shaped eyes and perforated irises and nostrils.
In addition to human figures, their main contribution, they have also left us zoomorphic representations, monkeys, elephants, rams, etc... to which we must add some hybridizations of human beings with animal figures.
The Nok culture, in northern Nigeria, is the oldest civilization in sub-Saharan Africa, and is considered the creator of the first figurative terracotta sculpture on the continent. Its influence on later civilizations is enormous, but its origins remain uncertain today. It is a transitional society between the Stone Age and the Metal Age, dating from the 5th century BC to the 2nd century AD.
Condition: Minor damage to the top of the headdress and the beard area. Minor areas eroded by use. Most of the features are well preserved.
It shows partial restoration consisting of volumetric reintegration in the frontal part.
The surface is rough, typical of fired terracotta, with signs of erosion and wear.
Private collection, Madrid.
SMALL HEAD NOK
Nigeria (5th century BC - 2nd century AD)
