Owambo knife

[mariusgmioc]

Hello Johan,

I don't see anythig "touristy" in your blade. While I know nothing about this type of knives, yours appears to be a very beautiful and genuine example.

I list here a few points that I associate with "tourist" knives:
1. Blades are flat and flimsy, made of sheet steel or stock;
2. Blades are dull, without a cutting edge;
3. Knives often come lavishly decorated (to catch the eye of the less knowledgeable buyer);
4. Decorations are often in complete discord with the ethnic style of the area where they come from (as the makers are trying to make them more in the taste of the prospective buyer... or what they think is the taste of the prospective buyer);
5. Materials are cheap and workmanship is crude.

None of this applies to your knife which I think would be a good addition to any collection of ethnic weapons.

Moreover, I do not think your knife deserves to be called "reproduction." Why reproduction if it is traditionally made by locals? What would differentiate it from the original? How comes that you are so sure it was specifically made for tourist market?

Regards,

Marius

[Johan van Zyl]

Hello Marius

You make a number of very good points, and I am sure they are all credible. I am grateful that they are favourable to my Owambo knife!

Concerning the knife being a reproduction or not, and in answering your question, I will need to think hard, on how exactly I came about it. We were a group of students completing a working visit, and upon embarking on our return journey by bus, we were approached by a few vendors (I suppose that's what you could call them), who offered us some knives like these, as well as other diverse objects like rattan sieves for the sifting of mahango seeds, carved wooden spoons and carved masks. And there was also a stick with a knife inside, much like a sword cane, which I also purchased. My partners in the group also made a number of purchases. I got the feeling these vendors were used to seeing groups in the region, and, having identified them as eager buyers and a source of income, they eagerly provided their goods for sale. This was in 1968. I truly believe these "traditional" goods are sold there even today. What the Owambo knives sold in this fashion look like today, I do not know.

Perhaps you are correct that they were traditionally made in those days, and therefore not reproductions. Yet what sticks in my mind is that the purpose they were made for even in 1968, more so today, was not the same as what the purpose had been ages ago, before the arrival of frequent European visiting groups. I suppose the craftsmen's mode of operations was to create a deliberate surplus of goods, more than the locals required for themselves.

Now, once they establish a regular trade with visitors and perceive a regular inflow of profit, the "tourist market" gets airborne. And we have seen what happens then: (and here your five well-stated points of deterioration can be inserted). Somewhere in this game, on this timeline, "genuine" and "traditional" becomes "reproduction" and eventually, sadly, becomes "replica".

Marius, thank you for your reassurance that none of this applies to my knife, and that you think it is a good addition to any collection of ethnic weapons.

Johan

[Bob A]

Creating a surplus of a marketable object which is in general use in a given population does not render the object a "tourist" piece; it's merely a reasonable response to an income-producing opportunity. Development of a surplus is a healthy sign of a micro-economy, and the basis of civilisation.

The knife in question struck me immediately as a native African piece, and looks to have all the hallmarks of a true ethnographic tool.

The final determinant would be whether you've seen a similar knife in use by the local population; however, not having seen such use does not necessarily indicate that it is not in common use.

Nice knife, by the way.

[CharlesS]

While without a first-hand look it would be difficult to judge whether or not it is "touristy"...to me it seems to have some age regardless...I must tell you by Ovambo standards the knife is of average craftsmanship at best. Ovambo daggers are always rather simple but can be very elegant in design in both blade and scabbard. This one may well be a "working knife" and does not share the elegance the Ovambo are capable of in their blades.

Please, no offense intended, just an honest observation.

Please see these examples:

[Pieje]

Good authentic knife, not very old, perhaps 1930-1950

[Johan van Zyl]

Pieje, Charles & Bob, many thanks for your comments. Charles, no offense taken - we much prefer HO's, do we not?

Regards
Johan

[Pieje]

Charles is right that it isn't a good quality Ovambo knife. Seems to show some signs of use, but will probably be younger than I initially wrote. During the 50s and especially the 60s-70s quality strongly declined.