Barnawa Kaduna, Nigeria
Naija Heritage Collections Nigerian Heritage Collections
The Story Behind the Nok Terracottas
Heritage Journal

The Story Behind the Nok Terracottas

Among Africa's earliest known sculptural traditions, recovered in the Kaduna highlands.

Nok terracotta heads and figures, first widely reported in the twentieth century from sites on the Jos-Kaduna watershed, are among the oldest known sculptural traditions in sub-Saharan Africa. Dates and interpretations continue to be refined by archaeologists; what is not in doubt is their importance.

They are a reminder that "Discover Nigeria" is not only kingdoms and colonial railways. It is also clay, iron and villages whose names never made the atlas. Kaduna's heritage page is one place to begin.

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