Mandingo spear maybe , opinions?

[Kmaddock]

Hi
I did a trade on the attached,
It is one long spear 2.3 M long, head is 55 cm in total with socket and main head is 43 cm long and 8 cm at its broadest

Head has some rudimentary carvings but nothing too fancy

The entirety of the spear is wrapped in leather with some woven components which remind me of scabbards on Mandinka knife scabbards.

The butt of the spear is wrapped in iron

So does anyone have any opinion as to where it might be from and if it is a ceremonial piece due the the leather or a fighting piece.

Regards and happy Christmas to all

Ken

[Kmaddock]

some what better pictures of leather
Cheers
ken

[colin henshaw]

I would say Northern Cameroon or perhaps Hausa, Ken. I've seen that leather plaiting before from that area, also the engraving to the blade. Looks like a spear for fighting rather than ceremony to me, but sometimes its hard to tell the difference.

Regards, Colin

[Kmaddock]

Thanks for the pointer Colin,
I will do a bit more digging and see if I can find out any more information.
Regards
Ken