420-year-old tortoise, Baba, dies at Alaafin palace

A tortoise reputed to have lived for about 420 years has died at the palace of the Alaafin of Oyo in Oyo State, bringing an end to the life of an animal regarded as part of the kingdom’s historical heritage.

The tortoise, popularly known as Baba, reportedly died on Monday after falling ill and was subsequently buried.

The Director of Media and Publicity to the Alaafin, Bode Durojaiye, disclosed this in a statement issued in Ibadan on Thursday.

According to the statement, Baba had remained at the palace under the care of successive Alaafins, becoming an enduring symbol of the ancient Oyo Kingdom.

“Baba was more than a turtle in status. He represented a part of the oral history of the Yoruba race. Now, the Alaafin has lost an ageless companion,” he said.

The palace explained that oral tradition traced the tortoise’s origin to Oyo-Ile, the ancient capital of the Oyo Empire, before it was moved to the present palace in Oyo town.

Over the years, Baba reportedly became one of the attractions at the palace, drawing visitors who wanted to see the animal because of its remarkable age and size.

Two palace officials were said to have been assigned the responsibility of caring for Baba, whose diet included watermelon, corn pap wrapped in leaves and grass.

The palace said the tortoise became sick on Monday and stopped eating before eventually dying.

The statement added, “While he was alive, Baba was more than a diapsid. He was arguably the oldest living mammal in the world. He was venerated and loved by the people, who turned his abode in the Palace into a tourist point.

“Baba, the turtle, must have drawn its name from the fact that it was the oldest creature. No one could call him by his name, so Baba was adopted, indicating that it was a male. He drew his own crowd. Strong and friendly, Baba was the reason many people trooped to the ancient Palace in its days.

“In Oyo, Baba was regarded as the oldest indigene. It was the Paramount Ruler’’s most besotted pet. The Monarch met it in the Palace. Baba was nourished by a succession of kings, who inherited him as part of the relics of their ancestors.”

The palace further connected Baba’s significance to traditional Yoruba perspectives on the relationship between the living, the dead and those yet to be born, while making reference to Wole Soyinka’s renowned play, Death and the King’s Horseman.

It described the tortoise as an important part of the palace’s oral tradition and said its death represented the departure of a companion that had endured through several reigns.

“Baba fell ill on Monday, just a little sickness and couldn’t eat anymore. Then he died. Just like that.

“He had since been buried. Good night, Baba,” the statement said.