African spear

[mross]

The seller had the description as pre 1879 war. Does this seem correct? It is supposedly an English capture.

[Norman McCormick]

Originally Posted by mross

The seller had the description as pre 1879 war. Does this seem correct? It is supposedly an English capture.

Hi,
It is not easy to pinpoint a time frame for tribal artefacts as the form did not change much over the years. Your spear may well have the age the seller implies but it could just as well be later. Remember the first quarter of the 20thC is now a hundred years ago so items from this period are well patinated and difficult to tell apart from later 19thC items. I couldn't discount the possibility that your spear is indeed from the 19thC and if you trust your source I would then apply that dating to your spear. Hope this is of some help.
My Regards,
Norman.

[mross]

Originally Posted by Norman McCormick

Hi,
It is not easy to pinpoint a time frame for tribal artefacts as the form did not change much over the years. Your spear may well have the age the seller implies but it could just as well be later. Remember the first quarter of the 20thC is now a hundred years ago so items from this period are well patinated and difficult to tell apart from later 19thC items. I couldn't discount the possibility that your spear is indeed from the 19thC and if you trust your source I would then apply that dating to your spear. Hope this is of some help.
My Regards,
Norman.

Thanks, Norman. Yes I do trust the source, it was not eprey but a dealer that has been around awhile. Unfortunately for me I cut my collecting teeth in the world of Nihonto. With them you could probably trace them back to the exact day, hour, smith and what he had for diner. Then I got into Khuks, which are pretty easy to identify has the shape corresponds to the era. Not mention some are dated. Of course the Moro are a different story. So I do like to get a feel for the age. Thanks again. I'll go with their providence, they seemed pretty sure about the English capture as well. For what its worth the shafts circumference is: 2.5 inches