Snuff Kerrie
Probably 19th century
Northern Nguni South Africa Eastern and Southern Africa
South Africa
This snuff kerrie combines a knobkerrie, a short staff with a domed ball-head that could serve as a club in
hunting or combat, and a container for powdered tobacco to be used as snuff. Enhanced with human and animal features, the work has a velvety smooth, honey-colored surface. This fusion of two practical utensils into one finely carved wooden object is an excellent example of the ingenuity that characterizes work by artists in 19th-century southern Africa.
Wood and metal