ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with intriguing grouping of several distinct complexes. Each group has its own unique contribution to the history of southern Nigeria and to our understanding of the Lower Niger Bronzes. Perhaps the most persistent mystery of all are the “Tsoede Bronzes,” encountered in the mid-twentieth century by Europeans in the small mid-Niger River communities of Tada and Jebba Island. Facial scarification is in a dramatic pattern with lines radiating from his mouth meeting diagonal lines running from his nose bridge to his neck, while his forehead has vertical lines. All scholars stress the exceptional size of many of the Tsoede Bronzes and the obvious skill needed to prepare and execute such complex copper-alloy lost-wax castings.
