It certainly is very old ... but what is it ?

[katana]

Originally Posted by fernando

... Plus the the iron structure, namely the socket; wouldn't African stuff be thinner ?
Fernando

Hi Fernando,
I have an old African spear which has 'heavy' socketted butt and spearhead.....so the 'thickness' doesn't mean it can't be African. You have to bear in mind that the butt aids the balance of the spear, even if it is not a 'throwing' type ( 'hand held' spears tend to have heavy 'heads' ) A balanced spear makes it much easier to use in combat (for the same reasons as a nicely 'balanced' sword would)

Could you post a 'close-up' picture of the 'rivet marking' ?

Regards David