Ife primary glass production
Vidrio primario de Ifé
- Date
- c. 1050 · confidence medium
- Place
- Igbo Olokun, Ilé-Ifẹ̀, Osun, Nigeria
- Credited to
- Yoruba craftsmen of Ife
- Field
- Matter & energy
What it is
Glass production from local sand and minerals, with a lime- and alumina-rich composition found nowhere else. It shows that sub-Saharan Africa made glass from raw materials, not merely remelted imported beads.
Babalola et al. (2017-2018) identified crucibles and the high-lime, high-alumina (HLHA) composition.
What it led to
- glass beads as a symbol of Yoruba royal power
- the trade in beads across West Africa
- a revision of the world history of glass