KNIFE

Object/Artifact

St. Joseph Museums

Name/Title

KNIFE

Entry/Object ID

1999.39.5

Description

KNIFE/METAL/WOOD HANDLE/TWO CIRCULAR KNOBS HELD WITH TIN WRAPPING/BLADE VERY CURVED WITH LARGE HOOK AT END

Collection

ETHNOGRAPHIC/PHILIPPINES

Made/Created

Date made

1900

Notes

Early Date: 1900

Ethnography

Culture/Tribe

Filipino

Lexicon

Nomenclature 4.0

Nomenclature Primary Object Term

Knife

Nomenclature Class

Multiple Use T&E for Materials

Nomenclature Category

Category 04: Tools & Equipment for Materials

Dimensions

Width

8 in

Length

27-1/2 in

Parts

Count

Material

Metal, Wood

Condition

Overall Condition

Good

Overall Condition

Good

Provenance

Notes

Believed to be from the Philippines circa 1900

Research Notes

Notes

Ngulu (Executioner's sword) from the Ngombe (a Bantu tribe on the Conga River) in Africa. Ngulu may have originally been used in ceremonies where slaves were executed or sacrificed (and perhaps cannibalized), but by the early 1900s these practices were outlawed. The Ngulu became symbols of prestige. (Goats were perhaps used as substitutes in similar ceremonies). Original attribution was Phillipines, but I do not believe this is correct. Should be African, specifically to people's of Bantu tribe the Ngombe, Ngala, or Doko.