An Assessment of Four Centuries m(15th-19th) of Benin Art Production in Evaluating the Role of the Craft Guild System in Benin Polity

Abstract

The artistic traditions of pre-colonial Benin were firmly established in the peoples way of life and maintained by traditional craft guilds specially designed for this purpose. The establishment of the guild system became a solid foundation for handicraft industries to emerge as an integral part of the economic, social and administrative organisation in the kingdom. The European contact which began in the fifteenth century coincided with the height of political powers of the kingdom. Such contacts in the mid fifteenth and sixteenth century influenced art production resulting in a period of beautiful innovations. By the seventeenth century, in spite of an increase in the number of European visitors, art production suffered as a result of political instability and inept reign. A revival was attempted by the eighteenth century under much capable rulers, but it could not match the previous achievements. By the nineteenth century, the gradual decline of the kingdom gave way to the decline of the craft guilds. The eventual fall of the kingdom resulted in the collapse of the system. The major events of the four centuries demonstrates that Benin art was essentially a court art supported by royal patronage. It was hard for art production in the erstwhile kingdom to survive without stability and royal backing.