Shilluk Spear Head
White Nile - Greater Upper Nile - Bahr el Ghazal, Sudan (South Sudan)
Shilluk / Dinka / Nuer or surounding neighbors
Mid - Late 19th century (ca. 1850 - 1880)
Steel
Blade: 54,6cm
Blade & Socket: 65,4cm
Collection Date: 2021
Collection Number: 153

Ex. Rick Stroud (RSWORD): Raleigh, North Carolina, USA (2021)

A fine old and large Shilluk warrior spear head dating to the last half 19th century. Quality steel and workmanship, robust older examples like these are harder to find. The leaf shaped steel blade features a distinct strong medial ridge along its entirety. There are incised engraved decorations at the base taper of the blade and socket along with geometric trianglear motifs. These types of decorations can be found on spears from multiple tribes of the Greater Nile River Regions, including the Shilluk, Dinka, and Nuer People. The last two photos show very similar spears in the hands of Shilluk warriors.

[1] https://prm.ox.ac.uk/collections-online#/item/prm-object-131377

[2] https://prm.ox.ac.uk/collections-online#/item/prm-object-131378

[3] https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/E_Af1972-11-54

[4] https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/E_Af-162

[5] https://www.penn.museum/collections/object/250218

[6] https://www.penn.museum/collections/object/243164

[7] https://africanarms.com/gallery?shilluk-spear-point-99-x-8-8-cm-1-5-kg-weight

[8] https://africanarms.com/gallery?shilluk-before-1880-188-cm-62-x-10-5-cm