South American Bola with Embossed Art on Polymer Balls

Item AG9 

This Item was Sold on 19 December 2015 for $114


Similar artifacts for sale are often found on the South American Artifacts web page.

Historical Pricing information for this item and similar artifacts can be found at: Historical Artifact Prices.


This bola or boleadora is very unusual. Instead of being made with leather covered balls and a solid sand interior, this set was made using balls cast out of a very dense and strong polymer. The balls are colored like old ivory and the surfaces are embossed with beautifal art depicting scenes of gaucho life: men on horseback using bola, playing music, etc.. Two of the balls have the same art. The quality is so high that I have seen similar bolas sell on eBay as bolas made out of hand carved ivory and they have sold at very high prices. I have seen only a half dozen of these bolas for sale over the past decade, so they represent a very limited production. The cord is twisted and similar to that found on common solid sand bolas. The cord is also dry because of age but you can restore it with leather restoring products available in stores. I expect this bola set to be much stronger than the solid sand bolas covered with leather. A wonderful collectible in very nice condition.

Cord length = 86 cm ; Ball diameters = 6 cm ; Weight = 550 gm


The bola or boleadoras is a primitive hunting tool that was originally used by the Chinese, Eskimos and South American Indians. Bolas are a throwing device made out of weights that are attached to the ends of interconnected cords. Bolas are designed to capture animals by entangling their legs. They are most famously used by the South American gauchos to capture running cattle or game.

For detailed information about bolas from different cultures, please visit the flight-toys bola web page.



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