Functional / status knife arasa
Ndo / Alur / Lendu, Northeastern D.R. Congo / northwestern Uganda
Iron, wood, brass
Late 19th / early 20th century

This small knife was a working knife used by women among the Ndo, Alur (Lur), and Lendu, who live in the border area between D.R. Congo and Uganda. Some examples were the prerogative of a chief’s wife, who wore it during festivals as a symbol of her power in the context of supervising the cultivation and harvesting of crops. According to H. Westerdijk, the Ndo, who live on the upper Kibali River, were the original makers of these knives (Galerie du Crédit Communal. Beauté Fatale: Armes d'Afrique Centrale, 1992; Westerdijk, H., Ijzerwerk van Centraal-Afrika, 1975; Zirngibl & Kubetz, Panga Na Visu, 2009

From the collection of the author, this piece was illustrated in Ijzerwerk van Centraal-Afrika (Westerdijk, 1975, VII #14). 

9.125 in :: 23 cm

InventoryID #13-1646

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