Watching: The Throne of Alaafin Oyo

Overview

The Throne of Alaafin Oyo is an historical documentary that examines one of the most consequential royal transitions in contemporary Yoruba history. It tells the story of passage from the 52-year historic reign of Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III to the ascension of Oba Abimbola Owoade I. The film recount the political, spiritual, and institutional processes that define the making of an Alaafin. The documentary traces the ancestral lineage of the present Alaafin, documents rituals around the coronation and interrogates continuity, legitimacy, and the survival of indigenous statecraft in a modern constitutional era.