A forked iron instrument (Pl. II., fig. 5), with six gold bosses riveted with gold on to the iron, is certainly of a very antique character, though possibly not an article belonging to the original builders, for the condition of the iron and its location, while pointing to some antiquity, rather precludes any idea of its being of the earliest date. This was found in the Western Temple at the Acropolis ruins, at a point near, but not so deep as, the spot which Mr. Swan styles “the centre of the arc of the curved and decorated main wall of the Western Temple on the hill.”
The iron pincers (Pl. II., fig. 2), found with the gold scorifiers on an intermediate floor in the Elliptical Temple, are of simple construction, and are made of a bar of iron tapered at each end and doubled together, the doubled end being hammered close, but not welded. Traces of flux are on the tapered points. A second pair of iron pincers, but not in such good condition, were found on an intermediate floor in the Acropolis ruins.
Some six pairs of double iron gongs were also recently found, but not in any position or associated with articles suggesting antiquity. These were found on old Makalanga floors, also among grass roots and in black surface mould. Yet the type and pattern of gong is undoubtedly ancient, being found in Egypt and seen in the ancient paintings in that country, but like the rod of iron, the pillow, the ingot mould, and a score of other articles used not only by Makalanga but by other peoples of this continent, the form and make of these gongs have been handed down from time immemorial. The local natives know the use of these gongs, and say that they were beaten with an iron striker (Pl. II., fig. 20), but they have not seen any at Zimbabwe since they arrived seventy years ago, nor can they say that their own people ever made them, but they suppose that the old Makalanga, who, up to at least one hundred years ago, are known to have lived in the Zimbabwe ruins, made and used them. These gongs are known to local natives who have travelled, and these say they have seen them in use in the Zambesia districts, where they are used to greet the arrival of chiefs and the appearance of the new moon, also as a signal of warning. The two gongs are bound together by an iron band, which forms the handle. One pair was found on the floor of a hut built on block foundations with the usual clay-rounded, bevelled, and circular base, exactly similar to those on the filled-in plateau of No. 1 Ruins at Khami (see Chapter VII., section “Native Huts found in Ancient Ruins,” post, p. 152). The gongs found at Zimbabwe average 16½ in. high, and their sides are hammered together out of two thick sheets of soft iron. They have no clappers, and are intended to be struck from without. They have frequently been found in Kazembe country between the Zambesi and Lake Tanganyika, where the natives state that the gongs are not made now, and that they are very old (Anthrop. Journal, 1901, Article 39). Dr. Holub (vol. ii., p. 147) gives an illustration of a double iron gong of crude make and design, still in use among the Barotse as a musical instrument. Sir H. M. Stanley states that these double iron gongs were in use by the natives of Urangi (Upper Congo), and also at Mangala on that river. His illustrations of these gongs show great similarity to those found in various parts of Southern Rhodesia. Several writers on South-East Africa describe an identical iron gong still in use among the natives. Each gong gives a different sound to its companion gong.
A single iron gong (Pl. II., fig. 22) was also found among old native articles. The gong is oblong, and has an ornament at each end made of tapered strips of iron coiled into circles, and these ornaments strongly suggest that the gong was only used when suspended. It is 13½ in. long and 5½ in. deep. No explorer in this country appears to have seen a gong of this description. Its style and make are altogether unique.
One iron rod or sceptre, 3 ft. 5 in. long, was also found in a position not suggestive of antiquity. This was recognised by the natives as the rod of a chief, being a native symbol of power. Some of the dynastic chiefs of the Makalanga still possess these iron rods. The end of the rod is bent back to form the handle. Mr. Bent says the iron sceptres borne by Makalanga chiefs have their parallels in the north of the African continent! Ruling “with a rod of iron” is a scriptural description of despotic government.
Pieces of worked iron, with rings let through the top ends and broadening at the base, where there is a different shaped hole of a distinct form on each base, appear to have been keys (Pl. II., figs. 7 and 8). These were found with the Arab belongings in Renders Ruins.
PLATE 3.
Methuen & Co
— Relics & “Finds” —
Great Zimbabwe 1802–3.