African Oliphant

[Tim Simmons]

Horn/bugle, There are in "Stone" so should be okay here. Found this today in a place I have visited almost every month or two for years that has never yielded anything, then today bang! To me it seems to be from the North Nigeria and westward, Mali and so on. Need not be that old, Sokoto and other cities did not fall to the British until 1903. The decoration is rather reminiscent of textiles and leather work from the region. 42cm long in a straight line end to end. Note the circle link in the chain with a cross in the centre. Look at this link,

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=11382&highlight=chinese

I was not making it up. I wish I could find more on this symbol relating to African metalwork. The horn is a light thin wall casting really rather good. The skill needed to make this in bees wax and cast so well, I take my hat off. I work in a hard petroleum based wax which will take fine detail or machining.

I can hear the horns blasting, the mail and horse trappings jangling, trade guns firing, feel the heat and dust.

[Iain]

A very interesting piece. It's always nice to see items that while, not strictly weaponry, are part of the paraphernalia that goes with warfare.

For me at least, too often I see a culture or a period only in terms of the weapons I have studied and have trouble imagining an accurate picture of the people, the way of life and the culture as my focus has always been the weaponry.

An item like this horn evokes a very strong picture of the people of the time and I'm grateful to have a wider understanding and expanded mental imagery because of it. :)

[Tim Simmons]

Not always a good idea to encourage me :) . This one is Azande/Mangbetu.

[G. McCormack]

Have you made a sound with it yet?

[Gavin Nugent]

Tim,

That is a beautiful looking horn. Where they used in the same context as say the military Bugle?

Gav

[Tim Simmons]

It makes a loud noise. Interesting thing bugles and horns. I believe nearly all peoples use or have used then, even conch shell. I saw on TV some old highly decorated military bod talking about his regiment stuck on a hill in the Korean war. At night surrounded and out number by Chinese forces, between actual fighting, battling with bugle calls. Are they still use in the field today?

This is quite interesting-
http://www.tapsbugler.com/HistoryoftheBugle/HistoryoftheBugle1.html

[Martin Lubojacky]

Tim, this is really brave item. Congratulations

[Tim Simmons]

One at the Pitt Rivers museum oxford. The date is the date of donation.