The Benin kingdom was founded by the son of an Ife king in around 1300, but it was not until the 15th and the 16th centuries that the kingdom reached its maximum size and attained its highest artistic standards. Towards the end of the 15th century the Benin made contact with Portuguese traders living along the coast and it is likely that these traders introduced previously unknown techniques such as brass gilding to Benin craftsmen. Following the British punitive expedition to Nigeria in 1897, about three thousand brass, ivory and wooden objects were consigned to the Western world. They were later sold to underwrite the expenses of the expedition and to provide payments for the widows of soldiers killed in the war with Nigeria. At the time, Western scholars were stunned by the quality and magnificence of these objects.
Benin art is best described as a court art since it was associated with the king, known as the Oba. He held the monopoly on ivory and coral beads within the kingdom, and the brass, ivory and wooden objects referred to above were usually displayed during parades or were placed on top of ancestor altars.
