Beautiful essay that threw me on a tangent that lead me to the first Sub-Saharan graduate in a European University, Olu Atuwatse I (aka Olu Dom Domingos), who studied in Coimbra (on the same University I also graduated from, and my hometown) in the early 1600s and married a Portuguese women. The Itsekiri crown was offered to Olu Dom Domingos by the King of Portugal, and is still used today.
I just love how interconnected we all are.
Some links, for those interested:
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/08/23/africa/olu-of-warri-coron...
https://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/12/the-crown-of-the-olu-of-...
https://guardian.ng/saturday-magazine/why-kingmakers-made-ts...
https://thinkafrica.net/the-itsekiri-kingdom-1480-ad-present...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olu_Atuwatse_I