Ikul

An ikul or ikula is a knife or a short sword of the Kuba of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Ikul knife

Uses

The ikul consists of a leaf-shaped blade (iron or copper or wood) and a wooden handle finished with a round knob with sometimes decorative inlays. The blade has a well-marked central edge and can be decorated with engravings.^[1][2][3] They are ceremonial knives, some of which are made solely of wood (handle and blade) and richly decorated.^[4][2]

The ikul are about 35 centimetres long. According to tradition, King Shyaam aMbul aNgoong would have introduced the ikul in the seventeenth century after a long period of war. The king would then have forbidden the shongo sword to replace it with the ikul, a symbol of peace.

Gallery

• 
  Ikul made of wood.
• 
  Ikul.
• 
  Ikul of the Kuba people.
• 
  Ikul in the Brooklyn Museum.
• 
  Ikul.

Bibliography

• Jan Elsen, De fer et de fierté, Armes blanches d’Afrique noire du Musée Barbier-Mueller, 5 Continents Editions, Milan, 2003, ISBN 88-7439-085-8
• Laure Meyer, Art and Craft in Africa: Everyday Life, Ritual, Court Art, 1995