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Old 15th December 2013, 05:36 PM   #1
Freddy
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Default Congolese weapons

I haven't seen any threads on Central African weapons recently, so I thought : Why not show some of mine !

Here are some of my latest finds.

The first is a very nice Lobala knife. It has a well forged iron blade which is still very sharp. The wooden handle has been covered with a thick copper band.

Length : 45,5 cm.

Width of blade : approx. 10 cm.
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Old 15th December 2013, 05:45 PM   #2
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Thumbs up And here is the second one

This knife or shortsword came with a sheath. Again a beautifully forged blade.
The wooden handle is very thin with copper banding. There a small copper nail on top of the handle.
This piece has a leather covered wooden sheath to which copper thread is added. To that, at the top and bottom of the sheath, some decorated thin metal (iron) sheets have been added.

I'm still trying to find out which tribe this one comes from.
Does anyone know ?

Total length in sheath : 40 cm.

Lenght of knife : 37,5 cm
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Old 15th December 2013, 06:35 PM   #3
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I like the second one! Nice piece.

Regards,

Detlef
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Old 15th December 2013, 08:31 PM   #4
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Yes the second one is great. Never see before. I have to search.
...
I found this one in my documentation, come as Topoke.
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Old 15th December 2013, 08:53 PM   #5
Martin Lubojacky
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The second one could be Lengola (?), Ngandu (?), Saka (?). In any case, I think it is rareness to find it complete, with the original sheath. Congratulations !

Martin
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Old 17th December 2013, 10:50 AM   #6
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Luc, I think you might be on the right track. The handle of the piece you showed is similar.
If we look at the base of the blade, it's identical to my piece.
I'll try to find some pics of Tetela knives.
Thanks.
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Old 17th December 2013, 12:12 PM   #7
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Nice one Freddy,
Found this one on the net.

Tetela / Benge - Rdc Congo
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Old 18th December 2013, 07:58 AM   #8
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Good Congo knives, thanks for posting.

Could the second knife shown be made from a spearhead ?
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Old 21st December 2013, 04:04 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by colin henshaw
Good Congo knives, thanks for posting.

Could the second knife shown be made from a spearhead ?
I don't think so, Colin.

Most Central African spears have spearheads with a socket. This knife has a tang which goes through the handle.

The shape of the blade could have some resemblance with the shape of some Congolese spearheads, though.
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