Igbo-Ukwu Archaeology

14/01/2026

23/07/2025

We have Delight Anozie's PowerPoint for his presentation at the Society of Africanists Archaeologists in Portugal. Delight represents the people of Igbo-Ukwu.

17/06/2025

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0067270X.2025.2517469

This paper presents a study of the long-term relationships and negotiations that supported archaeological exploration for 85 years at an internationally important complex of sites known as Igbo-Ukw...

27/08/2024

In May 2024, we organized a digital training workshop for young members of the Igbo-Ukwu community, focusing on the use of photogrammetry to 3D scan selected 9th-century Igbo-Ukwu bronzes stored at the National Museum in Lagos, Nigeria.

This training programme is part of our internal repatriation project using facsimiles. After several unsuccessful attempts by the Igbo-Ukwu community to access the original artifacts at the National Museum in Lagos, the idea of a digital repatriation project was conceived. Following the digitization process, facsimiles of selected sculptures will be produced using 3D printing and bronze casting and will be presented to the Igbo-Ukwu community later this year. By housing these replicas in Igbo-Ukwu, the project will facilitate easier access to the objects and foster a sense of ownership within the community.

The Igbo-Ukwu bronzes are unique due to their early origin, exceptional craftsmanship, distinctive artistic style, and the profound insights they provide into the advanced and sophisticated society of the Igbo people in the 9th century. These bronzes stand as a testament to Africa's rich cultural and artistic heritage and continue to be admired and studied for their unparalleled contribution to global art history.

We extend our sincere thanks to all partners involved in this laudable project: the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge; the Department of Archaeology and Heritage Studies, University of Nigeria Nsukka; the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (Nigeria); the British Museum; and the Factum Foundation. We would especially like to thank Cambridge-Africa Alborada for funding the project.

As a first step in the repatriation project, we present to you digitized copies of some of the Igbo-Ukwu bronzes, allowing you to appreciate the magnificent artistry of our Igbo ancestors. Happy viewing!

Roped Pot
https://lnkd.in/djpnYw3M

Small Dish
https://lnkd.in/dfNUafwH

Serpent
https://lnkd.in/d5Kzh_E4

Bowl
https://lnkd.in/dfwxAivk

Shell
https://lnkd.in/deWn_GRR

Head Pendant
https://lnkd.in/daff6_Qj

07/06/2024

The residents of what is today Igbo-UKwu were the first cast bronze producers in West Africa. They created the exquisite Igbo Bronzes that were excavated in Igboukwu in 1959- 1960 and stored in Nigerian National Museums for decades. Now, IDU III of Igbo-Ukwu and the University of Cambridge have collaborated to create exact digital 3-D models.

Serpent
https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/igbo-ukwu-bronze-serpent-28d2f5bf00214f13a7d9bcdd0bc05050

Bowl
https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/igbo-ukwu-bronze-bowl-0fa17225604d471bbf10e00df1a90b76

Shell
https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/igbo-ukwu-bronze-shell-d5edecf1ec064c8e892d62f1ecca0646

Head Pendant
https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/igbo-ukwu-head-pendant-f3f78be9cf254fdebd011178d2d3bcaf

29/01/2021

Here is an example of the decorated pottery excavated at Igbo Ukwu in the 1960s.

27/01/2021

One of our aims this year is to understand the nature and history of the soils around Igbo Ukwu that both cover and contain archaeological remains. Such information may also help in the design of future work here, i.e. where and how to investigate this landscape.

We are taking samples of the sediments in tins of different lengths and sizes so that these may be analysed under microscope within laboratory conditions. Other types of analysis may also be possible from these samples (e.g. pollen identification, chemical components).

23/01/2021

Its not all about pottery and other artefacts. The soils contain a variety of data that may greatly enhance our understanding of the ancient society and changes in the environment of Igbo Ukwu.

All the excavated soil is sieved for small artefacts that could be missed during excavation. Samples of the soil deposits are also collected for wet sieving in water-filled buckets. Using a combination of wire sieve and cotton mesh, this separates the heavy soils and artefacts (e.g. bones and beads, which sink to the bottom of the bucket) from small organic 'ecofacts' such as seeds and charcoal (which float to the top of the water and are caught in the mesh). Both the 'heavy' residue and the 'light' mesh are then dried before their contents can be separated, collected and catalogued for analysis.

23/01/2021

Many of the pot sherds coming from the Palace test pit are decorated with deep incised lines and raised 'bosses', with concentric and wavy patterns. These extravagant designs are characteristic of the pottery that was found in the shrine and grave excavated in the 1950s/60s, dating to around the 8th-11th centuries AD.

We hope that we can use scientific dating methods to place this new assemblage in relation to that timeline.

23/01/2021

We are privilaged to have had an opportunity to open a test pit with in the Idu Palace. This is quite far from the site of the 1950s/60s excavations but has produced some very interesting results.

On the left of the picture is a fire-hardened surface over which were many specus of charcoal. The surface had at some point been cut by a pit, which is being excavated at the centre of the photograph. All of this occurs at almost 1m below the ground surface.