Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History

• World Regions

  All regions

  Select a region

  • North America
  • Europe
  • Central and North Asia
  • East Asia
  • Central America
  • South America
  • Africa
  • West Asia
  • Oceania
  • South and Southeast Asia

  Select a time period

  • 8000–2000 B.C.
  • 2000–1000 B.C.
  • 1000 B.C.–1 A.D.
  • 1–500 A.D.
  • 500–1000 A.D.
  • 1000–1400 A.D.
  • 1400–1600 A.D.
  • 1600–1800 A.D.
  • 1800–1900 A.D.
  • 1900 A.D.–Present
• Timelines

  by Time Period 8,000–2,000 b.c. 2,000–1,000 b.c. 1,000 b.c.–1 a.d. 1–500 a.d. 500–1,000 a.d. 1,000–1400 a.d. 1400–1600 a.d. 1600–1800 a.d. 1800–1900 a.d. 1900 a.d.–present

  by Geographical Region Africa   Central America   Central and North Asia   East Asia   Europe   North America   Oceania   South America   South and Southeast Asia  West Asia

• Thematic Essays
  • Recent Additions  |  All Thematic Essays
  • 
    Select a Thematic Category African Art American Art Ancient Near Eastern Art Art of the Americas Asian Art Byzantine Art Egyptian Art European Art Greek and Roman Art Islamic Art Medieval Art Modern and Contemporary Art Oceanic/Pacific Art Prehistory Select a Department American Decorative Arts American Paintings and Sculpture Ancient Near Eastern Art Arms and Armor Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas Asian Art The Costume Institute Drawings and Prints Education Egyptian Art European Paintings European Sculpture and Decorative Arts Greek and Roman Art Islamic Art The Libraries Medieval Art and The Cloisters Musical Instruments Nineteenth-Century, Modern, and Contemporary Art Objects Conservation Paintings Conservation Paper Conservation Photographs Robert Lehman Collection Scientific Research Textile Conservation

    ---

  • Select a Geographical Region Africa Central America Central and North Asia East Asia Europe North America Oceania South America South and Southeast Asia West Asia All Geographical Regions Select a Time Period 20,000–8000 B.C. 8000–2000 B.C. 2000–1000 B.C. 1000 B.C.–1 A.D. 1–500 A.D. 500–1000 A.D. 1000–1400 A.D. 1400–1600 A.D. 1600–1800 A.D. 1800–1900 A.D. 1900 A.D.–Present All Time Periods
    
• Works of Art
  Recent Additions
  
  

  Title Description
  Artist
  Material and Technique
  Credit Line
  Accession Number

• Index

  Artist (A–Z) | All Artists

  • A
  • B
  • C
  • D
  • E
  • F
  • G
  • H
  • I
  • J
  • K
  • L
  • M
  • N
  • O
  • P
  • Q
  • R
  • S
  • T
  • U
  • V
  • W
  • X
  • Y
  • Z

  ---

  Subject (A–Z)

  • A
  • B
  • C
  • D
  • E
  • F
  • G
  • H
  • I
  • J
  • K
  • L
  • M
  • N
  • O
  • P
  • Q
  • R
  • S
  • T
  • U
  • V
  • W
  • X
  • Y
  • Z

African Lost-Wax Casting: Bronze, Copper, and Brass

The metals used in Ife bronzeworks were from brass brought across the Sahara by Arab caravans.

Related

Timelines (2)

• Guinea Coast, 500–1000 A.D.
• Guinea Coast, 1000–1400 A.D.

Primary Thematic Essays (4)

• African Lost–Wax Casting
• African Lost–Wax Casting: Tada Figure
• The Portuguese in Africa, 1415–1600
• Trade and the Spread of Islam in Africa

Other Thematic Essays (5)

• American Bronze Casting
• Ancient Greek Bronze Vessels
• Direct versus Indirect Casting of Small Bronzes in the Italian Renaissance
• Igbo–Ukwu (ca. 9th century)
• The Technique of Bronze Statuary in Ancient Greece

Maps (2)

• Africa, 500–1000 a.d.
• World, 500–1000 a.d.

Index Terms (11)

Art Movement/Style

• Classical Kerma in Central African Art
• Lower Niger Bronze Industry of Western Africa

Geography/Place

• Guinea Coast

Material and Technique

• Brass
• Bronze
• Bronze from Africa and Egypt
• Copper

Object

• Silver Vessel from Africa and Egypt

Subject Matter/Theme

• Trade (1000–1400 A.D.)
• Trade (1400–1600 A.D.)
• Trade (500–1000 A.D.)

Share

| More

The term bronze is deceptive. Because metallic content cannot be determined from appearance, cast sculptures made from a variety of metal alloys are often all referred to as bronzes. Copper, which is easily worked through smithing, is particularly difficult to cast without the addition of other metals that slow its oxidation rate and improve the flow of the molten metal. Different alloys of copper mixed with zinc, tin, and lead result in what are more accurately referred to as bronzes (copper and tin) and brasses (copper and zinc). The metals used in West African sculptures come from a variety of sources. Tin is plentiful in Nigeria, and in the 1980s copper and lead sources that appear to have been mined were identified in southeast Nigeria. Certainly, however, the greatest periods of casting coincide with the influx of metals into the region from outside. The metals used in Ife bronzeworks were from brass brought across the Sahara by Arab caravans beginning in the twelfth century. In the fifteenth century, copper and brass were brought by Portuguese trading ships, contributing to another increase in metalwork.

Alice Apley Independent Scholar

Citation

Apley, Alice. "African Lost-Wax Casting: Bronze, Copper, and Brass". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/brnz/hd_brnz.htm (October 2001)

Further Reading

Burland, C. A. Lost Wax: Metal Casting on the Guinea Coast. Exhibition catalogue. London: The Studio, 1957.

Drewal, Henry John, John Pemberton III, and Rowland Abiodun. Yoruba: Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought. New York: Center for African Art, 1989.

Eyo, Ekpo, and Frank Willett. Treasures of Ancient Nigeria. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Knopf, 1980.

Related exhibitions and online features

Special Exhibitions (including upcoming, current, and past exhibitions)

Cast in Bronze: French Sculpture from Renaissance to Revolution

The Essential Art of African Textiles: Design Without End