Musele or Onzil Knife
Upper Ogowe River region: Kota / Kele / Nzabi / Mbede, Gabon
Iron, wood, brass
1850 - 1900

Often called a "bird head" knife for its resemblance to the African Hornbill (Calao), the onzil or musele knife was a symbolic emblem of religious prestige and social authority that was never intended for use as a knife. The onzil knife played a specific role in the context of several of the many religious societies that existed among the groups inhabiting the Ogowe River basin (Spring, African Arms and Armor, 1993; Westerdijk, The African Throwing Knife, 1988)

This exceptionally rare variation wears a rounded "beak" rather than the traditional pointed hornbill shape.

Two comparable examples of this non-bulging, delicate style exist: 

1). Fischer & Zirngibl, Afrikanishe Waffen, 1978, fig. 347. Zirngibl, Seltene Afrikanische Kurzwaffen (Rare African Short Weapons), 1983, fig. 157 (same piece published twice). 

2). Galerie du Crédit Communal, Beauté Fatale, Armes d'Afrique Centrale. 1992, fig. 181. Felix & GE (Eds.), Fatal Beauty: Traditional Weapons from Central Africa, 2009, [Orange edition] fig. 51. Felix, Low, Vivian & Lu, (Eds.), Fatal Beauty: Traditional Weapons from Central Africa, 2013, fig. 97 (same piece published three times). 

Published: 100 African Blades, no. 42 (Rider, 2021). 

13 in :: 33 cm

InventoryID #13-1750

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