(see above). There is a much closer parallel in a praise song recorded among the Bamasemola (a Sotho group in South Africa): The pangolin (thakadu), the “ox with iron scales,”10 is asked to teach the women how to cultivate fi elds with iron hoes and the men how to make and use iron weapons (Eiselen 1932: 14, 253): You are the ox with iron scales, A sheep and yet a crocodile. Come antbear leave the road, For you must teach the women, Must teach them how to hoe. You show the iron smelters To forge their spears and axes, And then you lead us to the fray. DEPICTIONS OF THE PANGOLIN IN ART Probably the oldest known depiction of the pangolin is found in the art of the kingdom of Benin. On the base of a brass stool, dated to the mid-sixteenth century, there is a relief image of a pangolin (fi gs. 17–19), along with multiple other emblems.11 It is notable that the pangolin is shown in a state of captivity, for its tail and one foot are tied to a post with a short rope (von Luschan 1919: I. 479–482; Plankensteiner 2007: 444; Tunis 1981: 24, fi gs. 4 and 18; Ben-Amos Girshick 1995: 49f). The motif of the captive pangolin is interpreted as follows: It is covered with armor, but it can be captured with ropes. This is a symbolic warning to warriors to adequately protect themselves (Plankensteiner 2007: 344f). In the nineteenth century the same motif was used on two ivory Benin box lids in conjunction with depictions of two fi ghting Portuguese soldiers. The bas-relief fi gures on the two lids are almost identical, but on one of the lids the animal is captive (fi g. 21), and on the other it is free (fi g. 20).12 At the royal court of Benin, kola nuts were offered to important guests in such precious containers (Hall 1922: 152, fi g. 65; Roberts & Thompson 1995: fi g. 145; Plankensteiner 2007: 344, fi g. 95). The Yoruba artist Fagbite Asamu or his son Falola Edun in Ketu carved a representation of a pangolin being captured as the superstructure of a gelede mask (fi g. 3). The scene shows two young men holding the animal’s back legs to prevent it from rolling itself up (Drewal 1989: 216; Okediji 1997: 174). The scene is interpreted as follows: “The artist left the weaker partner, here the pangolin, with an iota of hope, while challenging the hunters not to consider the battle won until the game is landed. It may also remind the victor to respect the vanquished” (Okediji 1997: 174). FIG. 17 (above): Royal stool of King Esigie with various animal attributes, including a rolled-up pangolin on the underside of the seat. Edo, Kingdom of Benin, Nigeria. Mid-16th century. Brass. H: 38 cm. Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, inv. III C 20296. FIG. 18 (above right): Detail of pangolin on fi g. 17. Photo: Peter Junge. FIG. 20 (right): Box with rolled-up pangolin. Edo, Kingdom of Benin, Nigeria. Early 19th century. Ivory. L: 15.6 cm. National Museums Scotland, Edinburgh, inv. 1985.309a. Photo: Trustees of the National Museums Scotland. FIG. 21 (below): Box with rolled-up captured pangolin. Edo, Kingdom of Benin, Nigeria. 19th century. Ivory. University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Philadelphia, inv. 29-93-6a&b. Purchased from the Estate of George Byron Gordon. PANGOLIN ORACLES FIG. 19 (above): Benin royal stools, war spoils of Sir Ralph Moor acquired by Berlin at auction (J. C. Stevens) in 1905. Fig. 17 appears at right. From Felix von Luschan, Die Altertümer von Benin, 1919, fi gs. 813 (Berlin III. C. 20 295) and 814 (Berlin III. C. 20, 296). Image courtesy of the Ross Archive of African Images, rossarchive.library. yale.edu.
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