Nigerian tin miners uncovered the first remnants of the ancient Nok culture in 1928. Archaeologists were astounded to discover how advanced this previously undiscovered society was as they exhumed ceramics, rock paintings, and tools. The Nok culture developed a comprehensive court system between 1500 B.C. and 300 A.D., centuries before contemporary ones were founded. They dealt with theft, homicide, adultery, and family issues by using various distinct types of courts.
The Nok were also among the first to create life-size terra-cotta statues that featured humans with long heads, almond-shaped eyes, and parted lips. Metalworking skills were also sophisticated among the Nok, who forged miniature blades, spear points, and bracelets. The Nok population, which influenced later known works of art among the Yoruba and Benin cultures, began to dramatically fall in 300 A.D for no obvious reason. Famine, resource overuse, and climate change have all been suggested as possible factors.
But did the Nok culture really vanish?
The Nok Culture and Civilisation
The terracotta sculptures of the Nok culture or civilisation define it as one of Africa’s and Nigeria’s oldest cultures. The Nok culture was named after the village where the tin miners discovered the first terracotta head in 1928. The discovery of artistic terracotta sculptures was accidentally found during a mining operation by Bernard Fagg in Jemaa and another near a Nok village around the middle of the 20th century. They were both recovered from the tin mining operations in Jos-Plateau, Northern Nigeria.
Bernard Fagg found more clay figures and during the following years, he began collecting terracotta from tin mines. The sculptures were shaped like humans and animals. The similar features led Bernard Fagg to regard it as a product of a single culture.
Since the first discoveries, only a few excavations have been carried out in the Nok culture sites. The majority of these excavations took place in 1960. They never provided evidence of the background of these arts including their settlements, economy, social and political structure of the societies. The only thing known is the terracotta sculptures. The artwork was evidence that specialisations in the craft were earlier practised in sub-Saharan African countries.
Other details of the Nok culture art have been revealed by Bernard Fagg’s excavation of Taruga. This excavation which was carried out in the 1970s drew attention to the iron smelting sites associated with terracotta fragments and has been dated back to the 1st millennium B.C.
The importance of the Nok sculptures has given rise to several speculations. Some believed that the figures represented gods and divinities of a society that believed in rituals and magic to conquer their environmental troubles and threats to their plants and animals being fertile.
Others viewed the sculptures as grave goods which were used in burials and shrines. Another speculation was that the sculptures were “royal art” of a kingdom not known. These speculations lacked evidence. They were mainly discoveries without actual contextual information. The Nok culture has remained an inexplicable entity dated between 500 B.C. and 200 A.D.
The Iron Culture of the Nok
It is not known when iron culture began in sub-Saharan Africa. Some believe it may have come from Carthage, modern-day Tunisia. Others believe it may have come from the Kingdom of Meroe in Sudanese Nubia where iron was being manufactured around 500 B.C. However, the earliest practice of iron smelting technology in sub-Saharan Africa was done by the Nok culture. The iron practice led the Nok culture to move from the Stone Age to that of the Iron Age without going through the Bronze Age as it is noticeable in other developments.
The Nok furnaces were known to appear in groups. One furnace was used for one smelting process, as it gets destroyed while the smelted iron is being removed. The next procedure requires constructing another furnace close to the old one. Thirteen iron furnaces were found in Taruga alone, with iron tools like hoes and axes which were used for agriculture.
Evidence of early iron in the Nok cultures comes from the Taruga sites excavated by Bernard Fagg in the 1960s. He found iron smelting furnaces dating back to 500 B.C. This is also the approximate age of iron in Carthage and Meroe. Taruga excavations exposed the oldest settlement of Nok culture which was between the 4th and 2nd century B.C. based on the radiocarbon data of charcoal found on the iron surfaces.
Nok culture in Nigeria covered an area of over 78,000 square kilometres. There were discoveries of weapons like an iron arrow and a spearhead which suggests that life was not always peaceful among the Nok people or their rivals. Nok culture declined around 200 A.D, but the reason remains unknown. It could have been climate change, migration or conflicts with rival kingdoms.
Nok Civilisation and Sculptures
Recent research suggests that the Nok culture existed around the middle of the 1st millennium B.C. and vanished less than a millennium later.
What preceded the Nok culture has not been published. It is impossible to believe that such a display of aesthetic beauty and abilities by the artisans did not have any pre-phase of development. The elegance of the Nok terracotta has led scholars to believe that an undiscovered tradition may have preceded the Nok art.
The influence of the Nok culture is believed to have extended beyond its own time, with later West African civilisations like the Yoruba and Benin showing traces of Nok artistic styles.
Nok artisans made use of the coil method for their terracotta figurines made from local clays and gravel. Their abilities are seen in how these works have survived for over a millennium. This is not to say that the Nok sculpture survived and remained unchanged over time. As a result of the erosion of the slip (a mixture of water and clay, used to give the pottery surfaces a smooth appearance) on many Nok sculptures, they lost their original smoothness and even texture did not reflect the original smooth appearance.
The figures, however, explained very little of what their social life was like. Scenes relating to illness, love, war and so on, were depicted in their figures. The sculptures had standing, sitting, kneeling and genuflecting-like poses. A figure showed a man and a woman kneeling in a romantic embrace. Another showed a man with his mouth open like he was singing with another playing the drums. Another showed a prisoner with tied ropes around his arms and neck.
Men and women had eyes shaped like triangles, big noses, mouths and ears, with their pupils represented by a small hole. Some were believed to be associated with rituals wearing a particular type of clothing adorned with heavy pieces of jewellery that were not likely to be worn every day, while some of the figures held weapons and others were seated with an arm resting on a raised knee.
Nok artworks were reserved in a national museum in Jos established by Bernard Fagg. They were obtained from the excavations carried out in the 1960s. One by Robert Soper in Katsina Ala, Angela Fagg in Samun Dukiya and Bernard Fagg in Taruga. Only Bernard Fagg’s excavation is published. The rest remain unpublished.
Further Studies on the Nok Culture
The Nok culture, one of the earliest known civilisations in West Africa, holds a significant place in African history. Flourishing between 1500 B.C. and 300 A.D. in what is now modern-day Nigeria, it stands as one of the oldest known cultures south of the Sahara.
Perhaps, the most remarkable feature of the Nok culture is its mastery of terracotta sculpture. These life-sized clay figures, often depicting human heads, animals, and mythological beings, are notable for their highly stylised forms, intricate hairstyles, and expressive faces. The sophistication of these artworks reflects a developed artistic tradition, demonstrating the Nok people’s advanced skill in sculpture.
Beyond their artistic achievements, the Nok are also recognised for their technological prowess, particularly in iron smelting. As early as 1000 B.C., the Nok people were smelting iron, making them among the first in Africa to use this technology. This gave them an edge in creating tools and weapons, which would have had a profound impact on their agricultural practices, hunting methods, and ability to defend their communities.
The influence of the Nok culture is believed to have extended beyond its own time, with later West African civilisations like the Yoruba and Benin showing traces of Nok artistic styles. These connections suggest a lasting cultural legacy, despite the Nok culture’s mysterious disappearance around 300 A.D. Much about their society, including their political and religious systems, remains unknown, adding to the intrigue surrounding this ancient culture.
Although much of the history of the Nok culture remains shrouded in mystery, can we really say it vanished or it simply underwent an evolution that showed itself in the arts of Ancient Ife and the Benin Kingdom?
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