The 16th century mask
at the heart of our logo has its roots in the ancient city of
Benin, in modern day Edo State of Nigeria. It represents the
Queen Mother IDIA, mother of Oba Esigie who ruled the Benin
Kingdom at the time.
It is one of two near identical masks taken to Britain by Sir
Ralph Moore K.C.M.G, Counsel General of the Niger Coast Protectorate,
following the British Punitive Raid on Benin in 1897. It was
bought by a Professor Seligman in 1909, from a relative of Sir
Ralph Moore to whom it passed on his death, and later passed
to the British Museum where it is displayed to this day.
In 1977 it was used as the symbol for FESTAC 77, The 2nd Black
and African Festival of Arts and Culture, hosted by Nigeria.
Between 1979 and 1992 it featured on the back of Nigeria’s
One Naira Note. In 1996 we adopted it at the heart of our logo
to convey Nigeria’s unique heritage … and our depth
of understanding of the Nigerian market.
The two masks:
On display at the Metropolitan
Museum,
New York, USA.
