Knife "bwambwa" - Ngbaka - DR Congo

• Old and heavy knife “bwambwa”

• Ethnicity: Ngbaka

• Democratic Republic of the Congo

• Overall height: 44.5 cm

• Period: early 20th century (possible late 19th century)

• Weight: 625 g

• Provenance: Swedish auction house; ex collection Sven-Erik Johansson, Varberg - Sweden

— This knife model was invented by the Ngbaka, but was adopted and widely used by the Ngombe. The Ngbaka recounted how their cultural hero, Seto, wore one, and described it as the “wife” of another of their blades, the za sali, which was the husband.

— The manufacture of Ngbaka knives required several days of forging and was costly. Although they could be effectively used as weapons, their value made such an act impractical; Westerdijk wrote: “its owner would only throw it in extremis, or when he judged he had a good chance of recovering it.” Accordingly, the weapon’s main role was as a symbol of power, wealth, and prestige. Known as ngwolo or bwambwa, this type of weapon was mainly worn by village chiefs, elders of the lineage, and other notables as a prestige symbol. They were brandished at important funerals, used during initiation ceremonies, and even worn by the police during the colonial period (Westerdijk, The African Throwing Knife, 1988).

— Last photograph of an Ngbaka chief and his knife.

— Careful and insured delivery with tracking number. (Bpost)