Ship wreck dismantling in Ilashe

guys, let's get it done while the tide is low

Low tide is a blessing in Ilashe. Waves are much less powerful than during high tide making bathing very pleasant for those who want take a dip in the warm water. The sea also uncovers some surprises. The seashore is punctuated by abandoned ship wrecks. Some of them appear only at low tide, covered by algae. This means money opportunity for local communities who engage in the dismantling of those remains.
Andrew Anetor is leading a team of young athletic boys, about 7 of them, to break those metallic structures into pieces that are small enough to be carried at the back of his pick-up. He was raised in the UK and lived in a few countries abroad before coming back to Nigeria. He resides in Tarkwa Bay and scrap metal collection for recycling has become his bread-earner.

Andrew Anetor and the dismantlers

Very short white hairs are perceptible on this face. He probably shaved a few days ago. His face is weathered and he probably got severely burnt on one side of his body where his skin looks regrown. He must be one of the leaders (Baba) of Tarkwa Bay because he owns a rather run-down pink-faded pick-up which is an essential tool to transport pieces of scrap metal from the shore to the recycling facilities owned by either Chinese or Indian people. The pick-up looks likely to breakdown anytime but his driver must have developed a particularly intimate knowledge of the mechanics to be able to bring it back to work whenever it breaks down. A tailored pampering regime in other words. But it is well worth it since the pick-up is heavy duty and adapted to driving in the sand with a full load.
We saw the vehicle coming from far with two men standing at the back, dressed in dark colours. At first sight, the shape of the pick-up, the sand, the seaside and the figures of the two men was a chilling view as they could have been smugglers, kidnappers of the kind plying the Sahara desert. But that was just a momentary illusion!

pick-up for scrap collection cooling down

As a matter of fact, the boys are solidly built to be able to carry out the heavy duty work which earns them a living.
Andrew explained that a ton of scrap metal is worth sixty thousand naira (between 150 and 200 dollars) and that he is usually able to collect two tons a day. He pays his boys two thousand naira a day, a very decent salary for those boys who would otherwise be probably without a proper job or keeping themselves busy with less commendable activities.

cutting torch in action

Strength and agility are key skills to be able to break the wreck structure into pieces. The team uses a hoisting mechanism with a heavy chain and two hooks that they adjust on protruding parts of the wreck and then manually tighten the chain to break down the rusted structure into smaller pieces, that can then be dragged back to the sand. There, a man, with a Superman hat, uses a cutting torch to further cut the metal into smaller pieces that can be loaded at the back of the pick-up.
Anyone looking for a beach job?

The Ogiamien family in Benin City: about wood and history

Roland Ogiamien in his wood-carving workshop Wood Roland Ogiamien is a renown wood carver. He is now retired in his home town of Benin City and is now in his 80s. We met him in his simple workshop, a barn opened on the surrounding greenery. A part of the studio is used to store wood pieces and make sure they are well dried. He is using a collection of german ustensils to carve and polish the wood. He spent most of his career working out of Lagos before relocating to Benin. Roland was explaining that the wood he uses today is different that the one he worked on in his early days. Ebony has become rare and wood carvers have had to switch to other types of wood. Traditional heritage is a large part of his inspiration which he translates on wood with his own particular style, exploring various techniques for the finish of his pieces. Roland Ogiamien and two of his favourite masks History Ogiamien is the name of an important royal family in Benin Kingdom. Towards the end of the

The mysterious stones images of Esie

turned into Stones Chief J. Agbo Ooye had been waiting in the shade of a large tree, in front of the National Museum of Esie, dressed in ceremonial costume with a velvet hat incrusted with crystal beads sown in the shape of his title and his name. He was sitting next to his wife on a bench, expecting our arrival. His wife, he would tell us later, was his best friend and she was actually demonstrating it by guiding his frail body from one place to another and guiding his hand when it came to sign autographs of his books. Chief Agbo Ooye is the author of two booklets on the Esie Stones. The first one, called A Personal Account of the Esie Stones is giving an overview of the differences between the scientific and the traditional interpretation of the Esie Stones. The second one is called the History of Esie and gives a brief account of Esie's history from the early settlement of Yorubas in various groups (Esie, Oro, Eku Apa, Igbonla, Edidi, Igbesi, etc...) to the present day. Thos

The Ejiogbe Twins, fine stone carvers

Kehinde and Taiwo dancing hand in hand Taiwo and Kehinde Olabode Ejiogbe: now and then Drums could be heard in a distance as we approached the open compound of the Ejiogbes. Two slender white-clad silhouettes, those of two Obatala followers, were dancing forward in our direction, sometimes hand in hand, sometimes not, but synchronised at all time. Taiwo and Kehinde Ejiogbe, the stone carver twins of Inisa, Osun state, were now greeting us and welcoming us in an open courtyard where a marquee had been arranged with rows of plastic chairs. Taiwo's simple lines I had met the Ejiogbe Twins about a year ago in Iragbiji and had bought some of their carvings which I still like very much. So it was natural to go and meet them again in their abode. The compound was decorated with the many stones carved by the Twins. Taiwo's works were displayed on the lawn separating the road from the house. Large pieces with an asiatic touch in the simplicity of lines of the carvings.

Nigeria, the land of plenty

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