Zandé Knife - Avungara; Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa, early 20th century

Zandé knife - Avungara; Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa, early 20th century.
Iron and vegetable fibers.
Provenance: Belgian private collection.
Measurements: 47 x 39 cm.
Collected for a long time by explorers and soldiers as trophies or objects of curiosity, African weapons are, in addition to their initial use as combat tools, true works of art that were meant to impress the adversary, either by their brilliance or their shape. They have also been used for other purposes, such as coins, parades, initiation and symbols of power.
Zande is a Central African ethnic group that straddles the Nile-Congo watershed and live partly in South Sudan, partly in the Democratic Republic of Congo and partly in the Central African Republic. They are excellent craftsmen of iron, clay and wood.