OYOTUNJI - VooDoo Alive in SC

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A reader asked whether we had encountered "AWOLOWO" during our visit to the Yoruba Kingdom, Oyotunji Village at Sheldon, SC. The short answer is YES as can be seen in the photo above. During our tour this was barely mentioned and we were not motivated to ask. We can report that the container is an actual burial vault. The round object in front is not a wheel cover, but a medallion of some sort which was also not explained. Just to the lower right of the medallion is a regulation metal name plate used immediately following burial, but prior to the arrival of a rendered granite headstone. We noticed that several sacred sites are garnished with spent half pint liquor bottles. Perhaps this an accommodation for the after life much as for Pharaohs in their pyramids. Whether the figure on top of the vault is, but a representative figure of one which may be within, we also failed to discover.

In our meeting with AWOLOWO we must say that the conversation was a bit one sided. It was reminiscent of our visit to the Military Mannequins at Bowman, SC, last October: mustangrolling.blogspot.com/2005/10/of-mustang-and-militia...

During the lull in our guide's presentation, we looked expectantly toward the next exhibit. Fortunately, he moved us along. Some things are more fun when you don't know too much about them.