Sudanese axe types

[Luc LEFEBVRE]

Throwing weapon carved from a single piece of wood and with a flat, rectangular section throughout. This consists of a broad splaying head cut flat across the top edge, and carved with 2 elongated triangular spikes projecting from either side, and 2 shorter spurs below on one side only. This head then tapers in to a curving handle that gradually narrows towards its end, splaying out again slightly at the butt. The sides of the object have been cut straight, except for the 2 curved areas between the projecting spikes, where the edges have been cut at an angle. The wood has been stained a dark reddish brown (Pantone 4695C) and polished. The object is complete and intact; the spikes on one side appear to be worn and damaged at their tips. It has a weight of 575.3 grams and is 692 mm long, with a head width of 320 mm and thickness of 12 mm, while the handle end is 36.2 mm wide and 11.5 mm thick.

Collected by L. Gorringe in the Sudan sometime between 1902 and 1912, and donated to the Museum by his widow in October 1944.

Similar throwing sticks, called luny, were used by the Ingessana in hunting and warfare - see C. Spring, 1993, African Arms and Armour, fig. 69, p. 77 and R. Boccassino, 1960, "Contributo allo studio della ergologia delle popolazioni nilotiche e nilo-camitiche, Annali Lateranensi XXIV, fig. 32a-e It may also be related in some way to the flat bladed weapon collected from the Murle by Petherick (1884.12.8) .