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The Nzappa zap (also referred to as zappozap, nsapo, kilonda, kasuyu) is a traditional
File:Brooklyn Museum 22.524 Axe.jpg, Nzappa zap, Brooklyn Museum
File:Brooklyn Museum 22.526 Axe.jpg, Nzappa zap or Kilonda
File:Brooklyn Museum 22.1516 Axe.jpg, Nzappa zap or Kilonda with full blade
File:Brooklyn Museum 22.840 Axe (2).jpg, Nsapo axe
File:Brooklyn Museum 22.578 Axe with Handle and Blade.jpg, Nsapo with thin blade
File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Ceremoniele bijl TMnr 2661-9.jpg, Ceremonial axe
The Nzappa zap (also referred to as zappozap, nsapo, kilonda, kasuyu) is a traditional weapon
A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, ...
from the Congo similar to an axe
An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...
or hatchet
A hatchet (from the Old French , a diminutive form of ''hache'', ' axe' of Germanic origin) is a single-handed striking tool with a sharp blade on one side used to cut and split wood, and a hammerhead on the other side. Hatchets may also be us ...
.
Uses
It has an ornatewrought-iron
Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a wood-like "grain" t ...
blade connected to a club-like wooden handle, often clad in copper, bronze or brass.
Largely ceremonial, it can be used much like the American tomahawk
A tomahawk is a type of single-handed axe used by the many Indigenous peoples and nations of North America. It traditionally resembles a hatchet with a straight shaft. In pre-colonial times the head was made of stone, bone, or antler, and Eur ...
, both thrown for short distances and as a melee weapon
A melee weapon, hand weapon or close combat weapon is any handheld weapon used in hand-to-hand combat, i.e. for use within the direct physical reach of the weapon itself, essentially functioning as an additional (and more impactful) extension of th ...
in hand-to-hand combat. It differs from the usual axe style, in that the blade mounts to looping prongs that affix to the shaft.
This weapon derives from the upper Congo region and was used as a brutal weapon in battle. It was usually crafted by the Nsapo people who thrived industrially from iron and copper. The axe is forged from Iron while the handle is made of wood covered in copper. This weapon yields a lot of damage when used mainly in close combat and sometimes directly thrown. The Nzappa Zap has a club like handle that flares at the base and has a rounded head. The blade is also attached through a post extending from the handle. Nzappa Zaps sometimes has two or three human faces in the iron head. The axe is ceremonial and usually kept and carried by the chiefs of the Songye. The weapon holds power and significance among the people. The axe was used in battle, as a status symbol, and also as a form of currency in trade.
The weapon is the etymological base of the name " Zappo Zap", an infamous Songye tribal group once active in the Congo Free State.
Gallery
See also
*Throwing axe
A throwing axe is a weapon used from Ancient history, Antiquity to the Middle Ages by foot soldiers and occasionally by mounted soldiers. Usually, they are thrown in an overhand motion in a manner that causes the axe to rotate as it travels thro ...
* Hunga Munga
A mambele is a form of hybrid knife/axe in central and southern Africa, originating from a curved throwing dagger used by the Mangbetu.
Description
The mambele consists of an iron blade with a curved back section and rearward spike. It can ...
* Hurlbat
A hurlbat (or whirlbat, whorlbat) is a weapon of unclear original definition. Older reference works refer to it largely as a type of club, either held in the hand or thrown. Modern usage appears to refer to a type of throwing-axe.
Historical refer ...
* Tomahawk (axe)
A tomahawk is a type of single-handed axe used by the many Indigenous peoples and nations of North America. It traditionally resembles a hatchet with a straight shaft. In pre-colonial times the head was made of stone, bone, or antler, and Europ ...
References
Blade weapons Axes Throwing axes African weapons Democratic Republic of the Congo culture {{DRCongo-stub