Knife from Chad, Tebu tribe

Tebu tribal knife, Chad
20th century (first half)
Iron, wood, snakeskin
Overall length with the sheath: 29 cm
Length without the sheath: 28 cm
State of preservation: as shown in the photograph

The piece belongs to the class of short personal weapons used by the Tebu, a nomadic people of northern Chad and southern Libya, known for their warrior tradition and for their craft objects of symbolic value. The blade, of forged iron, has a pronounced central ridge and is double-edged, characteristic of weapons intended both for cutting and for thrusting.

The sheath and the handle are covered in snakeskin, a detail indicating the distinct standing of the owner, since such materials were reserved for members of high social rank or for warriors of prestige.

Knives of this kind, sometimes also called telek in the ethnographic literature, were worn at the belt and used in everyday activities, but also as a defensive weapon and as a symbol of male maturity. Today such pieces are valuable testimony to the metalworking craft and the decorative art of the central Sahara.