Chieftain Javelin Head Scepter
Chieftain Javelin Head Scepter
Dinka - Nuer - Mahdist
Mahdist Sudan (Sudan - South Sudan)
Late 19th (ca. 1880 - 1900)
Iron, reptile skin
Blade: 7" (17.8cm)
Overall: 21 3/4" (55.2cm)
Collection Date: 2021
Collection Number: 226
Ex. American Private Collection (2021)
A javelin hunting spear head made into a scepter from the Nilotic Dinka or Nuer tribes during the Mahdist period. The narrow leaf- shaped double- edged iron blade having a slight medial ridge. Two shallow grooves follow parallel to the blade's edge to converge near the point. The socket is forged in a twisted manner before widening into a conical form toward the bottom for access to insert a wooden shaft. The bottom of the socket is bound in a reptile skin grip with three bulbous sections in replacement of the wooden shaft, creating a scepter. Items like this were commonly used by chiefs or higher dignitaries to rally fellow ansars during ceremonial or parades before battle.
Photograph 9: A European man standing next to three Dinka warriors highlighting the stark height difference as the Dinka are considered the tallest ethnic group in Africa.
[1] https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/E_Af1950-22-7?selectedImageId=1614202061
[2] http://oriental-arms.co.il/item.php?id=3820
[4] https://africanarms.com/gallery.html?6-different-old-dinka-spears
[5] https://www.africanarms.com/gallery?kordofan-el-obeid-38-5-cm
[6] https://africanarms.com/gallery.html?dinka-tuich-jur-luo-throwing-spear-148-cm