Preliminary Report of Archaeological Investigations of Esie, North Central

Adekola, K. and Aleru, J. O. Department of Archaeology and Anthropology University of , Ibadan,

Introduction The archaeology of Esie is yet to be properly delimited both in scope and in content. The town of Esie (Fig. 1) is located in north central Yorubaland, the homeland of the - Yoruba speaking peoples. It is one of the major communities making up the Irepodun Local Government Area of . Esie has the largest collections of soapstone figurines in West Africa. The figurines (over a thousand) depict the finest collection of work of art of a culture yet to be fully understood in spite of detailed investigations from the art history perspectives. Certain questions are still archaeologically pertinent: Who were the makers of the figurines? What are the other socio-cultural manifestations of the culture that produced the figurines? And; where are the possible sources of raw materials for the production of the figurines? These are some of the propelling questions that led to the ongoing archaeological research in Esie,

The Geography and Geology of Esie Esie is one of the important Igbomina towns. Esie is located in Irepodun Local Government of Kwara state on latitude 8° 12´N and longtitude 4° 54´E. The town is about 60 km Southeast of , the administrative and commercial hub of Kwara state. Esie is bounded by other Igbomina towns such as Okeya, , Oke-ode, Buari and Oro in the north; Ijara, Oke-Onigbin, Isanlu-Isin, Oro ago and Owa Kajola in the east; , and Obalayan in the west and; Ijan and Arandun in the south. Generally, the Igbomina towns are bounded on the north by the Nupe, on the West by Ilorin, on the north east by Yagba, on the Southeast by Ekiti, on the Southwest by the Ibolos and on the South by the Yoruba of (Aribidesi 1987, Aleru 1998, Aleru 2000).

The climate features two seasons, namely wet and dry seasons. The annual rainfall ranges from ca 1270mm to 1524 mm per annum. The rainy season extends from March to October. There is a dry spell in august lasting for about two weeks referred to as the ‗august break‘. During this period the rain becomes weak with light drizzles. The dry season is from November till March. Rainfall in Esie is greatly influenced by the southwest monsoon winds blowing from the Atlantic. Often, the beginning and end of the rainy season is characterized by intense thunderstorms usually accompanied by strong gusty winds. In the dry season the effect of the North east trade winds is felt making the atmosphere dusty and reducing visibility

Figure 1: South Western Nigeria showing the study area

Esie falls within the derived savanna vegetation belt. This is a secondary vegetation type associated with the slash and burn system of agriculture. According to Clayton (1961), the activities of man are often the most important factors controlling the vegetation of the derived savanna. The derived savanna is characterized by a mixture of forest (indexed by fairly closed, open spaces here and there and very sparse undergrowth); savanna woodland mosaic intermingled with farmland, cocoa and coffee plantations (Oyelaran 1998). Major vegetal components of the area include Elaeis guineensis (Oil Palm), Borassus aethiopium (Elephant palm of Fan Pal; ‗Agbon-Eye‘ or ‗Agbon-olo-du‘ in Yoruba), weeds such as Chromolaena odorata (Syn. Eupatorium odoratum) – Akintola in Yoruba and trees such as Blighia sapida (Akee Apple; ‗Isin‘ in Yoruba), Daniellia oliveri (West African Copal; ‗Iya‘ in Yoruba) and Khaya senegalensis (Dry Zone Mahogany; ‗Gedu‘ in Yoruba). Farming is the mainstay of the subsistence economy in Esie. The people cultivate a wide variety of crops, Manihot utilissima (Cassava), Yam (Dioscorea spp), Cowpea (Vigna spp), Maize (Zea mays), beans and groundnut. In terms of relief, Esie is underlain by igneous and metamorphic rocks belonging to the pre-cambrian basement complex. Due to the nature of the rock structure, Esie has a low ground water production because basement complex formation (to which rocks in Esie and some other places belonged are relatively poor acquifers (Adekola, 1996). The rocks are mainly in the form of gneiss, a gray quartz-biotite plagioclase hornblende paragneiss (Jeje 1978). Esie is drained by four major water bodies namely Rivers Osin, Osuolo, Ayaoba and Edu located in the East, North, West and South respectively. River Osin criss-crossing most of Igbominaland, is one of the major tributaries of the great River Niger. .

Historical Background There are two prominent traditions of Esie people. The first account has to do with the stone figurines which oral tradition, archaeology, art history and ethnography are yet to give proper account of their origins, their makers as well as their social, economic and political configurations. Three major lines of arguments have been canvassed for the origin of the figurines. Stevens (1978) who spent more than one and half years in Esie taking inventory, cataloguing, photographing as well as giving the figurines a sense of orderliness believes that the Esie soapstones are of Old Oyo origin (also Oba Yakubu Babalola 2008; Personal communication. According to him, the fact that the stone figurines combine elements from various traditions and as such could have been derived from a place that had served as a meeting point for such diverse influence (Stevens, 1978; Adepegba, 1982; Andah, 1982) A related view to that of Stevens is that the figurines at Esie were made by the Nupe who were the earliest inhabitants of Esie but had to flee in the wake of attacks by the Oyo (Abogunrin 2007; Personal communication). Adepegba (1982) on the other hand argued that the Esie figurines have origin based on the facial patterns and markings. According to him, the fact that the body markings and the recent sculptures of the Yorubaland tends to lend weight to the idea that Ife art traditions might have continued to flourish in Northern Yoruba country particularly in Oyo speaking areas after it had ceased in Ife (Adepegba, 1982:101) The second oral account has to do with the historical background of the current inhabitants of Esie. According to these accounts, Esie was established about three centuries and five decades ago, precisely circa 1670 when the progenitor of the royal clan, Agbonbifa left Oyo owing to land shortage (Stevens, 1978). On arrival at the virgin expanse of land, Agbonbifa and his followers settled at Igbo-Eki where they encountered acute water shortage (Stevens 1978; Oyebanji 2008, Pers comm.).The water problem was not solved till several decades later when Baragbon another historical personnage located the present site of the town which is surrounded by four rivers Osin, Esuolo, Ayaoba and Edu. Archaeological and Anthropological Research in Esie Although not much has been done archaeologically, Esie soapstone figurines have been investigated extensively by art-historians and anthropologists. Anthropologists Ramshaw (1936) and Stevens (1978) and art historians Adepegba (1982) and Pogoson (1990, 1998) have x-rayed the soapstone figurines from different perspectives with a view to gain a better understanding their origin, possible sources of raw materials and the links with other Yoruba/Nigerian artworks. It is on record that excavations were carried out at various times to unearth soapstone figurines by scholars such as J.D. Clark, S. Milburn, Justus Akeredolu and H. K. Rashid (Stevens, 1978; Aremu ,2006).Apart from these works notable archaeological works carried out in Esie include the ones by Hambolu, Onabajo and Aremu, Fatunsin and Opadeji (Aleru, 2006). Recently archaeological excavations were carried out by Adekola and Aleru (2008). Early in 2009 a combined team made up of archaeologists from the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (led by Dr. Akinade) and the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology carried out excavations within the compound of the National Museum Esie. Detailed reports of these works are been compiled for publication. Outside these current investigations, the most detailed archaeological work till date in Esie was by Onabajo (1988). He excavated three mounds recovering a total of 555 potsherds, two pieces of cowry shells, two metallic objects and an ivory comb with criss-cross hatching decoration. He postulated that the metallic objects might have been used in the carving of the stone sculptures (Onabajo 1988). Onabajo (1988) obtained six dates: 560 ± 80 BP 1422A.D 500 ± 220 BP 1482A.D 1070 ± 100 BP 912A.D 930 ± 140BP 1052A.D 270 ± 160BP 1712A.D 250 ± 120 BP 1732A.D According to him, the first four dates reflect antiquity while the other two reflect modern times. On the basis of the dates, Onabajo concluded that Esie could be regarded as a transitional site between Nok and Ife.

Archaeological Reconnaissance and Surveys of Esie and Environs Archaeological Reconnaissance and surveys were carried out in selected parts of Esie environ, namely, at Igbo Ilowe, Igbo Eji, adjacent areas to the Esie Museum and Ijan. Since it is a norm in archaeology to start from the known to the unknown, one of the authors embarked on carrying out a reconnaissance survey of the areas surrounding the National Museum Esie where over a thousand soapstone figurines have been retrieved, in order to identify possible areas of further investigations. Evidence from the survey suggested that the adjoining areas to the museum have been vigorously exploited by farmers. In fact very few potsherds were seen on the surface with the exception of a partly broken pot about 2 m away from the main fence of the Esie museum. Igbo-Eji Archaeological Reconnaissance was also carried out at Igbo Eji. Igbo Eji is about 1.5 km southwest of Esie. It was noticed that microliths are widespread on the surface. The observation was that they are actually in their secondary context owing to erosion. As of the time of the investigation, herds of cattle were freely roaming around Igbo Eji for pasture. It was agreed that Igbo-Eji should be investigated in the future. Some of the stones artefacts are embedded in hard lateritic soil (Fig. 2). It must also be reiterated that Igbo-Eji is reputed to be the first location of the current historic cultures of Esie. Ijan Ijan appears to be a source of steatite for the production of the figurines. There are outcrops of steatite at the centre of the village; houses have even been built on some of the outcrop. Ijan is about 4.5m southwest of Esie. The soapstone at Ijan Otun is embedded in laterite. The spot (oju orisa - shrine) with widespread appearance of steatite was marked with GPS 8 °11´N, 4 °55´E (Figs 3&4).

Okodo According to traditions, Okodo was one of the earliest settlement sites of the Esie people. As of the time of the investigation, Okodo (about 8km South of Esie) was bushy and the terrain was difficult to walk through. In spite of this, our local informant (Pa Isaiah Oyebanji) was able to be on the team for a reconnaissance of the site. It is noteworthy that in spite of a few scattered potsherds not a single figurine (either partly worked/complete) was recovered during the 3 hour survey of the site. We were able to identify the market square. The square was also confirmed by our octogenarian informant. No standing wall was noticed. The swampy parts of Okodo were intensely farmed. The most prominent plants cultivated were leafy vegetables and sugarcane.

Figure 2: Igbo-Eji

Figure 3: The Shrine at Ijan with soapstone outcrops

Figure 4: Close view of the soapstone outcrop embedded in laterite

Figure 5: Possible Soapstone quarry (Igbo Ilowe)

Perhaps, a major contributor to lack of surface materials at Okodo could be as a result of intense grazing of the site by nomadic herdsmen. About three bands of such were seen on the way to the town while sporadic shots are fired to the air intermittently to scare away cattle thieves /bandits.

Igbo Ilowe Two major key issues informed the decision to work at Igbo Ilowe. First, the informant was able to give the precise location of one of the test pits sunk by Onabajo. The full report of the excavations was not provided by the author until his demise. The spot was actually on Pa Isaiah‘s farmland. Another probable source of soapstone is the hill range around Igbo Ilowe. Quarry-like extractions were observed on the lateritic hill surrounding Igbolowe (Fig.5). Second, was the fact that during the reconnaissance and survey of Ilowe lots of partly- worked figurines were recovered at different spots (Fig. 6).

Figure 6: Partly-worked soapstone

Igbo Ilowe is about 2km north of the town; the site is about 1.5km from Baragbon mausoleum at Oke Isanlu in Esie. The area is mainly farmlands now with the closest house structure being the Anglican Church (part of the Mission House was graciously given to the authors for keeping equipment throughout the duration of the work)

Excavation and Analysis of Finds Two test pits were sunk at Igbo Ilowe, the first (latitude 8°12´36N and longitude 4°54´ 19E) was very close to Onabajo‘s dig. This was to allow us have a comparative picture of the materials present. The second on an ash mound 8°12´31N and 4°54´15E. For test pit 1, the datum point was the peregun tree (Dracaena fragrans) close to the mound. With the aid of equipment such as ranging poles, prismatic compass, pegs, measuring tapes and survey pins, the site was gridded using 3 m as our grid interval. From the datum point, two ranging poles were aligned with the aid of the prismatic compass to determine the primary baseline, all other secondary lines were determined. A pit of 2x1 m co-ordinates 50 cm N 15W, 50 cm N 17W, 50cm S 15W, 50 cm S 17W was sunk. Digging was done by 10 cm spit level. The maximum depth reached was 90cm when soil became extremely compact and hard. Major finds from this test pit are potsherds which constitute the bulk of materials retrieved. Organic matters include snail shell, bones and palm kernel (Table 1) Test pit 2 was on an ash mound of 6 m long and 4 m wide respectively. The mound is also on a farmland surrounded by a cashew tree, banana, and pawpaw and cassava farmland. The 2x2 m square test pit was on 0°N0°E, 2°N0°E, 0°N2°E2, °N2°E. As usual digging was by 10 cm spit level and this was maintained until the sterile layer was reached at 2.2 m.

Figure 7: Test pit 1

Materials recovered from the pit included microliths such as flakes, points, chips and trapezium while two hand axe pre-forms were retrieved from the 30-40 cm spit level (Table 2). Five layers were discernible from the stratigraphy of the two pits. For pit 1, layer I is dark brown in colour (7.5YR 3/2 munsell colour chart). The layer has lots of rootlets and has been disturbed by farming. Layer 2 is hard and compact with traces of ironstone. It is dark brown (7.5YR 3/3). Layer 3 can be referred to as the ash layer, grayish brown in colour (10YR 5/2). The fourth layer is compact, hard, lateritic and brown in colour (7.5YR 4/3). The last layer has extremely compacted lateritic material. It is brown in colour (7.5YR 4/1). For pit 2 layer 1 is dark reddish brown in colour (5YR ¾). It contains a lot of rootlets. Layer 2 is fine-grained in texture. It is dark reddish grey in colour (5YR 4/2). Layer 3 contains a lot of ash concretions spread across the spectrum. It is very dark in colour (5YR 3/1). The fourth layer is sticky when wet. The soil breaks in clods. It is dark reddish brown in colour (5YR 3/3). .Layer 5 is hard, compact and reddish brown in colour (5YR 4/3).

Pollen Analysis The pollen grains recovered are very few. The highest and lowest numbers of palynomorphs recovered per level are 14 and 2.These are Malpighiaceae, Cperaceae, Poaceae, Alchornea sp, Elaeis guineensis (Oil Palm, Phyllanthus sp, Casuarina equisetifolia, Acanthaceae, Monolete spore, Thelypteris gonylodes type, Hypoxylonies elongatus, and Trilete spore. According to a Palynologist, Orijemie Emuobosa who actually carried out the pollen analysis, we may not be able to provide valid scientific conclusions on human impacts on the environment as well as the palaeo environmental conditions of the area owing to the paucity of pollen grains. As a rule, a minimum count of 200 grains per sample/level is needed to produce a pollen diagram of significant value. In this context, any count less than 200 is usually treated with considerable caution.

Discussion As confirmed by oral tradition, it is quite apparent that the current human populations of Esie do not have much to do with the stone figurines. Perhaps our best chances of having an understanding of the figurines lies in intensive investigation of Igbo Ilowe which has produced some of the materials identified in the tables. From available evidence, especially the quantity of partly-worked and un-worked pieces, it would also appear that Igbo Ilowe was a major centre for the production of stone figurines similar to those found in the vicinity of Esie. The laterite hill in the vicinity provides clues as to the possibility of steatite mining in the area. The soapstones as evidenced in Ijan are embedded within laterite. Hollows left by the extraction or mining of soapstone are manifest in the laterite hill. That hill could have provided a ready supply of raw material for individuals creating steatite figurines (Aleru & Adekola 2008). The proposition by Onabajo that the metallic objects he discovered might have been used in making the figurines is yet to be fully substantiated. Steatite being a soft stone could be worked by a soft metal such as bronze or brass implement. Ijan is likely to be one of the prominent centres for sourcing for steatite which being a metamorphic rock, and due to its nature, could easily transform into other rock types. Various factors might have attracted the early settlers to Esie town. The presence of fertile land and favourabe climate for agriculture as well as nearness to raw material for making soapstone figurines could be major factors for such an extensive art tradition. From pollen analysis, we can deduce that oil palm was utilized and forest clearance was done. According to Emobosa, the presence of ornamental plant Casuarina equisetifolia, however, appears strange in tropical Africa as the specie is native to Australia. It might be interesting to find out how it reached Esie. The huge number of figurine so far retrieved in Esie may have also ruled out the possibility of the art tradition being either from Ife, Old Oyo or that of the Nupe. It is highly likely that the society that produced the stone figurines was very advanced, accomplished, stable and potentially peaceful. Such elaborate works of art are less likely to be produced in an unstable sociopolitical system. The environment appeared to be wetter at the time of occupation by the long gone culture. This is attested to by the share number of snail shells (Archachatina maginata) as well as oyster shells recovered. These appeared in all the levels in great numbers. The settlers depend on plant and animal food. Crops such as cassava, yam, cocoyam, maize could have formed their staple food and they could have been supplemented with vegetables of various types Animals were widely hunted (indicated by the presence of lithic artefacts such as awl, points made of large animal bones). Even now Esie is a regarded as a major source of salted meat obtained from wild games popularly referred to as bush meat (eran igbe), a delicacy of millions of Nigerians.

Conclusion From the materials retrieved were two hand axe pre-forms (from excavation) and another two from surface collection during the reconnaissance and surveys. There are also points, blades, single platform core, and double platform core borers indicating pre-historic occupation of Esie. Also included among the finds are ground stone axes (made of soapstone). The functions of these are yet to be fully ascertained. Made of soapstone, rules out the possibility of they being a major indicator for early farming practices. They might have been used to perform a more recent function as a ritual symbol as is common among Sango (god of thunder) worshippers. Further reconnaissance and surveys of this site as well as Igbo-Eji are desirable as we believe that these might shed light on Stone Age archaeology of Esie and that of Nigeria and West Africa in general. The presence of beads in the excavations suggest bead making in the area. This is supported by the presence of tuyére that might have been used for bead polishing. The chronology of the area is yet to be fully determined. The presence of a local (African) smoking pipe in level 110-120 of pit 2, however, suggests a date of at least 17th century A.D. This date correlates with some of the dates obtained by Onabajo (1988). Conclusively, it is envisaged that with further support both locally and internationally, this current investigation would go a long way in trying to unravel the mysteries surrounding the Esie soapstone figurines.

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