Cold Steel African Walking Stick

African walking stick - Knobkierrie

Details:
- Material: polypropylene, black
- Total length: approx. 94 cm
- Weight: approx. 717 g
- Thickness: approx. 7 cm (knob), 4.4 cm (shaft base), 3.2 cm (shaft tip)

The Zulu are one of the most militant ethnic groups in South Africa. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Zulu king Shaka conquered a large area between the Pongola and Umzimkhulu rivers and laid the foundation for the Zulu nation. At the Battle of Isandhlwana in 1879, the Zulu inflicted one of the most humiliating defeats in history on the British when, with little more than cowhide shields ( Isihlangus ) and their short javelins ( Assegais ), they wiped out an entire 1200-man English column (supported by artillery and cavalry).

The Zulu are characterized by their preference for the so-called knobkierrie (also simply called kerrie ), which is used both as a walking stick and as a baton. These hand-crafted sticks are mostly made from local hardwoods such as wild olive wood, buckthorn ( pink ivory ) or kudu bush and are capped with a distinctive spherical knob.

Adapted for the Western market, Cold Steel's African walking stick retains some of the best features of the traditional Zulu kerries , such as the wavy shaft and classic geodesic pommel. However, it is made from black polypropylene instead of expensive exotic hardwood. This makes it not only indestructible but also weather-resistant. It will not rot, warp, crack, chip, swell, shrink, mold or fade.
Although primarily designed as a walking stick, it can also be used as a pointer, lever, or goad and can even function as a self-defense tool in an emergency.