Time and tide at the Oron Museum

The Oron Museum has suffered many setbacks in its 50-year history.

It has been destroyed by war, been invaded by robbers, and has lost its most precious artefacts to the ravages of time.

Though one of the five first-generation museums in Nigeria, Oron Museum has seen better days and hardly measures up to its contemporaries, namely the Esie Museum, the Jos Museum, the Ife Museum, and the National Museum in Lagos. All things considered, the other four museums have fared better.

War and peace

The Oron Museum opened to the public in 1959, the first to be established east of the Niger. A mere eight years later, it was destroyed. Because of its location on a major beach of the Cross River, the museum was particularly susceptible to the effect of hostilities during the Nigerian Civil War.

In 1967, Nigerian troops took up residence in its galleries and the museum's collection were evacuated to Umuahia and ultimately to Orlu in Imo state. The museum was eventually bombed extensively, damaging the structure which had to be rebuilt in 1971.

In 1976, about six years after the end of the war, the collection-mostly carvings-were returned. But it was far from paradise regained; 545 pieces were missing. The museum was left with only 116 pieces.

"An unduly large portion of the surviving pieces were poor examples," recalled the late Kenneth C. Murray in the slim volume, Guide To The National Museum Oron.Murray, a British archaeologist, helped collect most of the pieces, and eventually founded the Nigerian Federal Department of Antiquities.

In spite of its many shortcomings today, an entrance into the Oron Museum momentarily draws one into a different time and age. Dim lights, grey ceilings, shadowy walls, set the theme for an early 20th century experience. One immediately becomes immersed in a vast combination of Southern Nigerian custom and art: Ibibio, Efik, Igbo, Annang, Old Opobo, Ogoni, Ogoja-Obudu-Tiv, and the Oron.

The first gallery

A hand-crafted raffia screen demarcates the two galleries from the reception; and an imposing figure of the Ekpo masquerade welcomes you into the first gallery. This 10-feet, raffia-clad wooden figure in addition to its menacing look has a machete drawn with a finger pointed forward as though to direct an attack. Its age is placed at about 70 years.

The Ekpo masquerade symbolises what has been described as the "most traditional of all Ibibio secret societies." This ageless society was exclusively reserved for males and performed judicial functions.

"The Akpan Ekpo was used as the police," says a museum attendant.

To the right of the figure is a line-up of the Ekpu carvings. Native to the Oron culture and originally made of hardwoods, the Ekpu carvings are of immense importance to the Oron people. The figures depict male ancestors; typically, one of these carvings was made for every male that died in a family and it was believed that the spirit of the dead person resided therein. Some Ekpu figures are believed to be up to three centuries old.

Directly opposite the Ekpu carvings is a collection of seven masks. Among these are: the Janus-faced mask, and a female head with an elaborate horned hairstyle. The masks, intricately finished with leather, are described as highly complex artefacts. These masks are believed to have originated among the Ejagham people of Cross River State and are likely no longer produced in Nigeria even though it is said that the art still flourishes in certain areas in West Cameroun.

The gallery unfolds many more timeless artefacts, including Cross River bronzes, made using the same casting technique as in the classical traditions of Ife and Benin. These date to the ninth and eleventh centuries. There is also a display of newer works such as the bark cloth wrapper made by Victoria Abang in 1974. A non-textile fabric, the bark cloth was used for wrapping precious objects. Also called "stomach cloth," it was used as female mourning costume among the Boki and Bekwarra of Cross River State. This beautiful art went into decline with the rise of imported cotton.

There are raffia weaves made into mats and bags. Raffia art is common in Ikot Ekpene and Abak areas of Akwa Ibom State. Ibibio carvings from the same state are also on display. In the early 20th century, a carver would typically be commissioned by a community whenever carvings were needed to work over a period of time-sometimes up to a year. This was common, not only among the Ibibio communities but in the Annang communities as well.

The second gallery

The second gallery brings to light the drama, music and dance culture of the Efik-Ibibios. Puppets with articulated body parts are operated from behind a curtain. Ibibio puppet plays were common, not just for entertainment but as an instrument for social control. The themes usually had to do with topical social issues such as theft, greed, or even adultery. Other locally made musical instruments displayed in the second gallery: a Bahumuno flute, an Ibibio basketry rattle, a Boki lute, and a banjo from Ukelle.

In-between the two galleries is a tall, rectangular structure of wooden poles, and raffia roofing. This open-faced hut is a funerary shrine. Inside the hut, a large cloth with elaborate patterns and central bold design is used to decorate the wall.

Traditionally, other personal items of the deceased would be hung in the hut to accompany him to the underworld. The construction of this elaborate structure, called the Nwomo by the Annang-Ibibios of Akwa Ibom, was a very common ancient practice which has evolved into the modern day cement-built mausolea still sparsely erected in honour of the dead in the region.

Recovering lost glory

The Oron museum was founded primarily for the preservation of the Ekpu carvings, one of the most fundamental elements of the Oron culture. In the early 1940s, Mr. Murray personally collected these carvings from the various families that owned them. He would later describe them as "some of the oldest and finest wood sculptures in the whole of Africa."

The present curator of the museum, Adeoye Oluwasola, believes that the carvings are more valuable than ever. He is not alone in this view. The Ekpu carvings have been the most targeted artefacts by robbers, who have raided the museum three times. Attendants believe that the main attractions are the Ekpu carvings. According to one, "They (thieves) came in 1988, in 1995, and in 2003 to steal the Ekpu... they sell them to the big men."

The museum has had to resort to unusual methods. "All the originals have been taken out because of theft. So we now have only the replica... we are not supposed to display replicas," Mr. Oluwasola says.

The irony lies in the fact that most of the carvings have been stolen from a museum created to preserve them. One such carving turned up recently in the US and is up for sale, perhaps confirming the theory that some of the Ekpu carvings were smuggled to the West. Elizabeth Bennet, who trades in African Art and has one of the Ekpu carvings for sale in the US, is unaware of the value of the art.

"I don't have reason to think it is very valuable," she says. "If the government of Nigeria believes that the piece we have is stolen and valuable, they are welcome to contact me."

Meanwhile, Mr. Oluwasola looks beyond the lost Ekpu carvings, pointing out the uniqueness of the Oron museum. "There is no museum in Nigeria whose location can be more apt and relevant to the community than the Oron," the curator insists. "The location is unique and can bridge culture and relaxation."

A recent addition to the museum, which is located on the beach, is the development of an outdoor eatery which now attracts visitors.

Mr. Oluwasola, who says the management of the museum is planning to celebrate its 50th anniversary later this year, hopes that the beach resort, together with the museum, will help attract visitors and tourists.

"There is a need for the tourism potential of the museum and the beach to be explored... we want the 50th anniversary to blow up the place so that people may know about the place," he enthuses.