Big currency from Africa -- Zaire?
 

Found this in a little antique shop in Berkeley California. The seller only knew that it had a small tag on it that said "Zaire Currency."

I had seen one like it in a Tirbal Art Gallery, but did not ask questions.

Anyhow, here it is for your comments. It is huge, 56" long and that is 142.24 centimeters. 8 inches wide.

Would sure like to know more about it.

Hi Bill,

I found this text in the catalogue 'Dodelijk mooi-Beauté fatale' (deadly beauty) :

"The liganda, manufactured by the Hanga and the Olombo, is an enormous spear point, measuring upto 1m60. It was used as currency in Lomani.
This object was used during transactions concerning marriage or when a new cano was bought.
The Topoke have two sizes : the bigger model is called doa and the smaller one is called dihunga (with a value of 1/3 of the doa). A slave was worth 30 doa"

You found a very nice cuurency piece, coming from the Congo. :)

Hello Bill,I like that very much.I have a copper spear ingot I will post when I have time.I have just had to re-install everything, and also lost everything I had stored.Tim

Bill:

You are hopping all over the world with your collecting man. That is one big piece.

Ian.

Hi Bill,

Here's a website that calls it a Tarumba, from Zaire/DRC:

African Currency Exhibition

(warning: if you a) collect African blades, b) have strong opinions, and c) have high blood pressure, take your meds before viewing this website. There might be disagreements between its info and your own views :D ).

Fearn

Pliny said there is allways something new comming out of Africa,it is the same with weapons.This is only 17cm long and copper, I have post it before, but this time more in context.Tim

Fearn,

I like the website. Lots of neat stuff. Interestingly enough they said my piece was worth $200 and that is what I paid at the little antique shop.

I had no idea but thought that it would be worth that as a decoration/conversation piece. I really like the shape. Need to clean it up just a bit and get a large block of wood, drill a hole in it and stand this thing up.

Truthfully African weapons are not my thing. I find them somewhat interesting, strange shapes and designs. Great to hang on the wall of our sunroom. Their forging quality is, shall we say, 'different.'

I much more like the Indonesian achipelago pieces, first, then Chinese swords, Indian Newar, Nagaland, Nepal and Tibet.

Swords are mystical things. Many times the most important and valuable thing a man owned.

My heart is really in Javanese keris. Those can be incredible. Totally diferent than any other kind of collecting. But I don't feel right about displaying them, so I got an armload of bits and pieces from all over to hang on the walls.

Still this big old piece (anybodu have a guess as to age?) has a certain presence. Also I really liked the seller, a strange, exoctic woman who had an incredible bracelet made from unborn babys' teeth. THAT was REALLY wierd. Anne and I were so taken aback that I forgot to take a picture.

The woman had it in her medicine bag and would not even discuss selling it. there must have been about 30 teeth small as half a grain of rice. Maybe it was not what she said, but sure looked and felt authentic.

Thanks
Bill

This picture shows how good they can get.Tim

Does anyone know if anything is ever traditionally inserted into the socket? Just kind of curious.