Dagger

Luba people, Democratic Republic of the Congo, African

19th-20th century

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Hide shield attached by leather strips to oval wooden frame; vertical wooden handle on back; patterns in blue, white, black, ochre, red pigments.
Female head with braid
Dark-brown, spherical vessel has lug handles on the sides and short, vertical neck; shoulder has incised arcs with overall roulette pattern below.
Vertical iron pole with six iron currency objects attached at top; three objects are iron hoe-blade currencies, and three are possibly rattles, hoe-shaped but open in center and with an enclosed portion that could have held percussive elements Function: Currency staffs constitute a display of wealth; if it is Fulani, it would have been owned by settled Fulani rather than nomadic herders.