The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of December 19, 2025
Throwing Knife / Prestige Scepter (pingha)
1800–mid-1900s
Overall: 45.5 cm (17 15/16 in.)
Location: Not on view
Did You Know?
Look closely at the upper blade of this throwing knife to find a representation of a lizard, and at the lower part of the shaft for a crosshatch design resembling lizard skin.Description
Throwing knives (pingha, plural kipinga) were historically used by elite Zande men as weapons in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Carefully calibrated, they would spin when thrown or balance on the shoulder when taken into battle. Kipinga were not everyday weapons, but considered property of the king; only those fighting on his behalf like royal bodyguards and court attendants used them. One side of this blade is adorned with complex figural and geometric engravings. No longer used for fighting, kipinga are now a sign of authority and heritage.- by at least 2004Jacques Hautelet, La Jolla, CA?-2015Robert H. Jackson by gift to the Cleveland Museum of Art2015-The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OHProvenance Footnotes1 Standing on Ceremony: Traditional African Arms from the Donna L. and Robert H. Jackson Collection, p. 17
- Standing on Ceremony: Traditional African Arms from the Donna L. and Robert H. Jackson Collection. Cleveland: Western Reserve Historical Society, April 24 through November 7, 2004
- {{cite web|title=Throwing Knife / Prestige Scepter (pingha)|url=false|author=|year=1800–mid-1900s|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2015.156