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Reactions have continued to trail the death of Austrian-born iconic Yoruba traditional religion devotee, Suzanne Wenger, who died Monday, at her adopted home of Osogbo, the Osun state capital at the age of 93.

Describing her death as ‘a big loss’ to the nation, Director-General of the National Theatre/National Troupe of Nigeria, Prof. Ahmed Yerima, said the late Wenger’s work in Osogbo had paid off with the international heritage status bestowed on the Osun Osogbo by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

"Honestly, I see her death as a big loss to Nigeria and Nigerians. She loved the country with a passion. What she tried to do all her life was give the Osun Osogbo a focus, an international outlook. I’m happy that before she died the place had become a cultural heritage," said Yerima.

On his part, Nigeria’s former ambassador to Ethiopia, Chief Segun Olusola, said she represented a ‘movement’ in the religious Yoruba traditional folklore, adding that she succeeded in her lifetime to becoming a messenger of the gods which her followers would miss.

"Of course, nobody will live forever, but she was an elderly woman leader of the religious Yoruba folklore movement for whom she had become a messenger of the gods. We’ll miss her but her work will stand the test of time," Chief Olusola stressed.

The retired broadcaster and now a traditional religion advocate further described the late Wenger as ‘a humane person who related personally with the people surrounding her."

"We’ll miss her, all her children, artists, singers and the devotees of the Ifa Yoruba traditional religion. She lived the way she accessed the religion," Chief Olusola said.

Director-General, Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC), Prof. Tunde Babawale, while expressing sadness over the event said the Osun Osogbo priestess would be ‘sorely missed,’ just as he described her as ‘a bridge between African and European cultures.’

According to Prof Babawale, the late Wenger ‘lived her entire life for the propagation and preservation of the African heritage. She was the one person who ensured that the whole world got the correct perspective on Nigerian culture and for that she would be solely missed.

"She was more significant for being a bridge between African and European cultures and she clearly demonstrated by her love for African culture that humanity remained one and that African culture could compare favourably with other cultures of the world. We’ll really miss her, though we take solace in the fact that her legacies live on," Babawale said.

Suzanne Wenger, who was conferred with the title of Adunni Olorisa, died Monday after adopted family members said she had just finished taking her afternoon meal and had retired to her room.

She has since been buried at the Osun Osogbo shrine in line with her wish to have the shrine become her final resting place.

Wenger first came to Nigeria in the late 50’s as a spiritual tourist in search of the Ori Inu (spiritual essence) but had since remained behind in service to the Osun River goddess as a devotee of the traditional river worship.

The iconic figure had become a major tourist attraction at the annual Osun Osogbo festival held inside the grove in the Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

It was widely speculated that Wenger had been ill for the three weeks before her death and that she had been admitted to hospital on January 6.

It would be recalled that Wenger, along with other artists, created the shrines in the Sacred Groves, a wood in the town of Osogbo, in which the internationally renowned school of art of the same name originated.

She saw her life’s work as maintaining the Sacred Groves as a spiritual home for the Yoruba.

The late Wenger is a recipient of the national merit award which she received last year.