Ngulu Ngala Execution Sword

Description

Ngulu Ngala Executioner Sword.

A Ngulu is an execution sword used by the Bantu peoples (including the Ngombe, Doko, Ngala, etc.) of the Congo Basin.

It has a massive blade, made of iron, with a non-cutting back and a semi-circular concavity. The handle, surrounded by metal wire, ends with two large wooden buttons and a smaller one. This type was used for capital executions by beheading (the condemned was kept seated, head extended and attached to a branch). The Ngulu beheading was forbidden by the Belgians during the Free State of Congo period (1885-1908). The weapon, deprived of its function, took an even stronger symbolic and ceremonial value. From the 20th century, the Ngulu was worn during the ritual dance known as Likbeti, at the end of which the weapon was used to decapitate a goat whose flesh was then consumed by the whole tribe.

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