By Bassey Asuquo
Museums are regarded as buildings or institutions dedicated to the acquisition, conservation, study, exhibition, and educational interpretation of objects having scientific, historical, cultural or artistic value. The Oron museum is serving such purposes.
According to research, the National Museum, Oron was established in 1958 to accommodate 800 known ancestral figures (Ekpu Oro) of the Oron people which are believed to be among the oldest and finest surviving wood carvings in Africa.
During the civil war, many of the wood carvings were looted and the museum severely damaged, and in 1975, it was re-inaugurated. At present, it houses the remains of the wooden sculptures and other ethnographic materials from across Nigeria.
The Oron museum also has displays of bunkers used during the civil war alongside a crafts village.
Mr. Edmund Etim, an historian from Oron Local Government Area, noted, ”Initially, the Museum in Oron was opened in 1958 to house most of the 800 known ancestral figures (ekpu) of the Oron people which are reputed to be among the oldest and finest surviving wood carving in Africa.
The Museum was destroyed during the Nigerian Civil War and many of the wood carvings looted. It was, however, reconstructed and re-opened in 1975 to house the remains of these wooden sculptures and other ethnographic materials from many other parts of Nigeria.
In addition to this, the museum also preserves and displays bunkers used during the civil war and a crafts village.”
Research findings show that the National Museum, Oron, was the first museum established in the eastern part of the country, thereby, making it part of the first five museums.
It was established by K.C. Murray as a treasure house for the preservation of ancestral spirits of Oron which were preserved at the decaying ancestral shrines in the town. Aside the Ekpu carvings, the museum is also the home of unique skin- covered and horned head masks; the powerful Obasi Njom masquerade from upper Cross River area, old manila currency, relics of the water spirit masquerade, traditional raffia and metal works. The traditional pottery and metal works provide visitors and tourists with a cultural voyage into the world of creativity.
The museum has two large rectangle galleries which are meant for exhibition of the art collections, and is being divided by a hand-made raffia screen.
Mr. Edmund Etim, explained, “Oron Museum was East of the Niger and was the first to be opened in the east of Nigeria which made it part of the first five museums in Nigeria.
K. C. Murray established it to preserve several of hundreds of Ekpu Oro (ancestral spirits of Oron) and wood carvings believed to be the oldest and finest wooden sculptures in Africa, which were preserved at the decaying ancestral shrines in the town.
Apart from the Ekpu carvings, the museum is also the home of unique skin-covered and horned head masks; the powerful Obasi Njom masquerade from upper Cross River area, old manila currency, water spirit masquerade relics, traditional raffia and metal works. In fact, the traditional pottery and metal works provide a visitor with a cultural voyage into the world of creativity.
The museum also contains two large rectangle galleries divided by a hand-made raffia screen. The galleries serve the purpose of exhibiting the art collections.”
According to research, the oldest and finest surviving wood carvings gathered from various places across Africa were housed alongside the Ekpu Oron in an ancestral shrine in Oron.
When the shrine began to decay, as some of the carvings are believed to be more than three centuries old, there was, therefore, need for a new place of refuge and safety for the wooden carvings and the treasured ancestral spirit.
This led to the establishment of the museum by K.C. Murray in 1958. It was inaugurated and opened up for public use on December 7, 1959.
Prof. Ekpo Eyo, an archaeologist and an indigene of Okobo Local Government Area, has this to say, “The Ekpu Oron are reputed to be the ancestral spirit of Oron. These carvings were kept in an ancestral shrine in Oron. It later began to decay because some of the carvings are believed to be more than three centuries old and there was need for a new place of refuge and safety for the wooden carving and the treasured ancestral spirit, which led to the opening of the museum by K.C. Murray. The museum became open to the public on the 7th of December, 1959.”
Oron Museum is the home of wood carvings. The museum is divided into sections, namely, the carved wooden figures section; pottery section; masquerade section; traditional materials section and local instrument section. Each of these sections contains monuments unique to most of the ethnic groups in Akwa Ibom, such as the Ibibios, Annangs and the Oron people. These items in the museum help in celebrating the cultural heritage of these ethnic groups- their history and origin.
History has it that the museum which was destroyed by the war and some of the over 600 wooden carvings therein, destroyed or stolen, was rebuilt with the help of Keith Nicklin in 1971.
The carvings were later brought back to the museum in 1976 from Umuahia, where it was taken to for refuge.
An historian from Uyo Local Government Area, Chief Ezekiel Akpan, said,” The museum has different sections. From the carved wooden figures section to the pottery (Ishibori) and masquerade (Ekpe) section, the traditional materials and the local instrument sections, each of it contains monuments unique to most ethnic groups in Akwa Ibom, like the Ibibios, Annangs and the Oron people. The items in the museum help in celebrating the cultural heritage of these ethnic groups, like their history and origin.
During the civil war, the museum was destroyed, with some of the over 600 wooden carvings stolen. But it was rebuilt with the help of Keith Nicklin in 1971, and the carvings were brought back to Oron museum from Umuahia, where they were taken to, for refuge in 1976. Till today, the museum still has relics of the civil war like the Ojukwu Bunker.”
ART WORKS AT ORON MUSEUM
THE STONE SCULPTURE OF KEITH NICKLIN: Keith Nicklin is a British anthropologist who helped in rebuilding the museum after the Nigerian civil war. His statue is right outside the museum towards the Oron river and it has a beautifully cut lawn surrounding it.
ANCESTRAL SPIRIT OF ORON (EKPU ORON): This Ekpu Oron serves as a place of a refuge for the spirit of a dead man, Oron people usually calls a dead person’s spirit into a wooden sculpture. They believe a dead man becomes part of the ancestors by doing that, then the spirits will continue to be involved in the activities of the living; sacrifices are usually offered to Ekpu Oron during special celebration to appease or thank them.
CARVED WOODEN HOUSE POST (OHAFFIA): This was obtained from Igbo-Obu hall by KC Murray, the house post is usually used in Igbo land to decorate the house of a prominent chief of the Ohaffia community.
OJUWKU BUNKER: The bunker was used during the civil war by Biafra soldiers as a hiding place and it is from here they fired at the Nigeria soldiers. This bunker till today still has an effigy of a soldier in it.
CARVED PAINTED WOODEN FIGURE (NWA-EKPO): This wooden figure represents an Ibibio young woman who is just coming out of the fattened room about to get married.
Other items at the museum include Wooden carved Skin covered mask (Oyumana), the Ibibio-Ekpo wooden mask, Obasi-Njom masquerade, Calabar Ekpe wooden mask, craft village within the museum, metal works of different kinds, a craft shop, Annang-Ibibio funerary shrine art and painted wooden figure (Ebieke).
ORON MUSEUM BEACH
The museum is located close to the Oron River. Visitors and tourists can see this river from the museum. At the beautiful river bank next to the old trade beach from which land boats carry cargoes from up river area of the Niger Delta coast towards Cross River, Cameroon and Fernando Po stands the Oron museum, encapsulated by the clear flowing waters of the Oron River.
By its location, it offers both recreational and aesthetic facilities to tourists with its sprawling river and beach view. The museum beach offers visitors and tourists to view nature at its best. At the beach area behind the museum, visitors and tourists would be carried away by sweet cuisines of the area, some of which are prepared with fishes cut from the river by fishermen.
Also, the sounds of speed boats conveying people and the sight of passengers, including women and children paddling their boats with canoes is usually a beauty to behold.
So, what are you waiting for? Visit the Oron Museum at your leisure. Get yourself treated to sumptuous fisherman soup at the beach bar.
This piece was earlier published in hard copy of Straightnews
