Efiat Tee · Plate V · The Sea Gate · Pre-Order (Ships ASAP)

Efiat of Mbo holds the Atlantic door of the old Calabar world — kin to Calabar, facing the open sea, with Ibaka's deep-sea fishing port at its heart. The plate draws the pier and the sea routes radiating outward. A bridge plate, tying this collection to the Peoples of Old Calabar. Navy shirt carries cream ink; white shirt carries deep survey navy.

Hero cut of Plate V from the Three Waters Collection. NINE PEOPLES · THREE WATERS.

History

Efiat holds the sea gate of the old Calabar world — the Mbo coast where the estuary finally opens to the Atlantic. Kin to the Efik in speech and custom, the Efiat were the outermost watchmen of that world: every ship entering or leaving Old Calabar passed their water, and their pilots and fishermen knew the bar and its moods better than any chart. Their port at Ibaka grew into one of the great deep-sea fishing harbours of the Nigerian coast, drawing fleets from across West Africa — the door of the estuary, still open, still working.