Seven spears from same origin?

Freddy · 22nd September 2007, 07:02 PM

As Tim said, these spearpoints are from the Northeastern border of Congo. This is the Ubangi-area. Main tribes are the Zande and Mangbetu.

These spearpoints are fitted to light shaft and then used as throwing spears. In fact, they are harpoons as the barbs prevent the spearpoint from slipping from the animal's body.

In the book 'IJzerwerk van Centraal-Afrika' (Ironwork from Central Africa) by H. Westerdijk, the authors states that there are two types of harpoonspears : those with a fixed point and those with a loose point. The ones with a loose spearpoint (although fastened to the shaft by means of a cord) are only used for the hunt.
The ones with a fixed spearpoint were also used for war.

The spearpoints you showed are of the last type, so used for hunting as well as for war.

22nd September 2007, 07:02 PM	#5
Freddy Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sint-Amandsberg (near Ghent, Belgium) Posts: 830	As Tim said, these spearpoints are from the Northeastern border of Congo. This is the Ubangi-area. Main tribes are the Zande and Mangbetu. These spearpoints are fitted to light shaft and then used as throwing spears. In fact, they are harpoons as the barbs prevent the spearpoint from slipping from the animal's body. In the book 'IJzerwerk van Centraal-Afrika' (Ironwork from Central Africa) by H. Westerdijk, the authors states that there are two types of harpoonspears : those with a fixed point and those with a loose point. The ones with a loose spearpoint (although fastened to the shaft by means of a cord) are only used for the hunt. The ones with a fixed spearpoint were also used for war. The spearpoints you showed are of the last type, so used for hunting as well as for war.