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Originally Posted by colin henshaw
Hi
I don't wish to be negative on such a rare piece, but I am a bit dubious about the "phallus" carving to the head of the knobkerrie. I have in the past seen similar embellishments done to wooden clubs and other tribal objects, to make them more "exotic" and enhance the value. Very easy to do and the application of some dirt etc., gives an old appearance.
Difficult to be 100% sure either way, but still a good object.
Regards
Colin
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Hi Colin,
thank you for your input, I can only say that IMHO the patina on this seems genuine. I bought this from a seller that does not sell arms, ethnographic items or antiques, and as far as I know was 'in the family' for a while.....a 'sleeper' in the true sense of the word. The dirt is too well ingrained and appears to be a build-up over time, rather than an application of 'one layer'. The horn seems to be quite old, and has suffered minor damage to the 'knob' which also appears to have occured a long time ago. I will try and find out further details as to how the seller gained possession of this object ....perhaps it would provide more details.
Assuming everything is genuine.....would South Africa be a likely source of this knobkerrie ?
Regards David