Mambele

A mambele is a form of hybrid knife/axe in central and southern Africa, originating from a curved throwing dagger used by the Mangbetu.

A selection of Mambele throwing knives in the British Museum
For other uses, see Mambele (disambiguation).
Variations of the mambele across the top row

Description
Kpinga

The mambele consists of an iron blade with a curved back section and rearward spike. It can be used in close combat as a hatchet or dagger, or more typically as a throwing weapon. It usually consists of four blades, three on top and one on the side. The curved hook was used to keep the weapon in the victim, and if pulled out, caused further damage. It would have been about 22 inches in length. These African iron weapons are thrown with a rotatory motion, and can inflict deep wounds with their projecting blades.

The kpinga is also known as:

  • hunga munga[1]
  • danisco by the Marghi
  • goleyo by the Musgu
  • njiga by the Bagirmi
  • kpinga by the Zande. They were classed as "Court Metal", being produced under the patronage of the Avongara clan, distributed only to professional warriors, and considered status symbols. It was also part of the dowry that a man must pay to the bride's family.[2] Soldiers would carry three or four into battle, hidden behind their shields. They were typically thrown at the enemy from 30 feet away.[3]

They vary constantly in form and their use extends across Africa, from the Upper Nile on the east through Central Africa and over to Gabon in West Africa. In parts of Central Africa these weapons assume the form of a bird's head.

These knives reflect the culture of Africa before western colonisation, both through their design and use. They can be symmetrical, bulbous, or even multi-pronged. Many are made of rarer and softer materials. These were harder to forge and were a status symbol to their owners.

  • In "Anne", the third season premiere of the American television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Buffy uses the hunga munga as both a battleaxe and a throwing knife in a demon dimension. A shot of her holding it is also used in the series' opening title sequence for that season.[4]
  • In the 2010 film Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Seso the Ngbaka knife thrower uses a hunga munga in his attack against the spike-wielding Hassansin in the sacred temple of Alamut.
  • "Hunga Munga" is the September 6, 2016 episode of the History reality television competition series Forged in Fire, which aired as the sixth episode of the third season. In that episode, the hunga munga was the main weapon that the final round contestant bladesmiths competed to forge; the winner of the episode was Jarred.[5]
  • Juan Cabrillo uses a hunga munga in Clive Cussler's 2018 novel "Shadow Tyrants". It is described as shaped like an ampersand.
  • Episode 13 of Deadliest Warrior depicts the Zande warrior using a Kpinga; a Zande variation of the Mambele.
  • In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the design of the Lizal Tri-Boomerang is based on the hunga munga.

See also

References
  1. 1960-, Wood, A. J. (2018-09-04). Human world : a visual compendium of wonders from human history. Jolley, Mike,, Lozano, Andrés. Minneapolis, MN. p. 82. ISBN 9781847809926. OCLC 1021808923.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. "Kpinga". Pitt-Rivers Museum. Retrieved 3 August 2011.
  3. Thompson, Avery (September 15, 2017). "This Three-Bladed Throwing Knife Will Never Miss". Popular Mechanics.com. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
  4. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hammer and Hunga Munga". YourProps.com. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  5. "Forged in Fire: Bonus: Hunga Munga Deliberation - Round 3 (Season 3, Episode 6)". History (via YouTube). November 2, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
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