This very rare and valuable Zulu Knobkerrie Club was made out of the horn from a Rhinoceros. It was collected during the Zulu wars in South Africa in the 1870s. I acquired it from the Barclay Gallery in 1987. The Barclay Gallery obtained it from a British auction house in 1986. Rhino horn knobkerries were reserved for chiefs of the Zulu tribe as a symbol of status. This knobkerrie is smaller than most of the knobkerries I have seen. The head has a diameter of 54.3 mm. The shaft tapers down from a maximum diameter of 20.4 mm near the head. The outer edges of the bulbous head have been flattened as though this club was actually used. There is no ornate decoration or copper wire attached as one finds on many Rhino horn clubs. It is in very nice condition overall, as shown in the photo.

I had two experts examine this club and both verified that it is a Rhino horn knobkerrie. One of them heated up the head of a pin and touched it at the base and it smelled like burning hair. He said that Rhino horn is made out of modified hair and the grain structure does look like compressed fine hair instead of wood. Rhino horn is very expensive. I will not ship this knobkerrie overseas and the buyer must promise to keep it intact and not allow it to be ground down into medicinal powder for East Asian consumption.