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ZULU WAR TEMS FOR SALE
AMB


Joined: 07 Oct 2005
Posts: 921
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I note that the following Zulu War items are for sale:

http://www.regimentals.co.uk/viewphoto.php?x=-1

It reports that the assegai and shield were given to a former owner by the curators of the Natal Mounted Police Museum.

Aside from the former SAP Museum in the Cape (now closed, I think), I have not heard of a NMP Museum. Or maybe I am too young?

Haven't we seen these items before?

Thoughts anyone?

AMB
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Sawubona


Joined: 09 Nov 2005
Posts: 1179
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However many times I click your link, AMB, I keep going to a pricey water bottle and that fact raises some red flags from the "get go".
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peterw


Joined: 30 Aug 2005
Posts: 865
Location: UK
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Thoughts anyone?


Oh yes.

Find me a single person who knew of, visited or had some form of contact with the "Natal Mounted Police Museum." I won't hold my breath.

Peter
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Mark Hobson


Joined: 18 Sep 2005
Posts: 106
Location: Halifax
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I'm trying to think back to my last trip me, Bill Cainan and some friends made in 2005, and I have a hazy recollection about The Natal Mounted Police Museum.

When we passed through Newcastle, Kwazulu-Natal, we stopped off very briefly (5 minutes at the roadside) to take photos of a statue of a member of the Natal Mounted Police, which I think was outside the Town Hall. If I remember correctly, the Natal Mounted Police Museum was inside the Town Hall. We were pushed for time and the afternoon storms were closing in, so sadly we did not go in.

Perhaps they are connected to the local Moths Museum?
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peterw


Joined: 30 Aug 2005
Posts: 865
Location: UK
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I made enquiries before these were sold in 2005 and asked specific quesions about the existence of the museum as I had bid on a number of items. Among the responses from people in KZN:

�Never heard of the museum. Ran the name past a couple of people with involvement and interest in that sort of thing and they'd never heard of it either - past or present. Nearest would be the Natal Museum - which is here in Pietermaritzburg. An all purpose provincial museum that does have a collection of artefacts.�

"Your querry regarding the Natal Mounted Police has been referred to me
for attention. I have no knowledge of a Natal Mounted Police Museum, and
as far as I know a museum of this sort never existed."

Peter
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Peter Ewart


Joined: 31 Aug 2005
Posts: 1797
Location: Near Canterbury, Kent, England.
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Saw

There is something wrong with the categories or the exhibits or both on this site, but if you keep clicking & going back & clicking again, the assegai & shield icon comes up eventually. I've found it more than once but still lost it afterwards - I think it moves from category to category! I was about to tell you which category to click on, but it has disappeared a moment after I was looking at it again!

Yes, these items have come up before here for discussion, when - to put it mildly - the reliability of their provenance was called into question quite strongly.

Peter
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Alan
Site Admin

Joined: 30 Aug 2005
Posts: 1530
Location: Wales
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This is the text of those particular items;
ZULU SHIELD AND ASSEGAI WITH AMAZING PROVENANCE.
We have been lucky enough to obtain a Zulu shield and spear from the battle of Ulundi. The battle of Ulundi was the final battle in the Anglo Zulu War, it occurred on the 4th July 1879 when the British finally defeated the Zulu Army and razed their Zulu capital being the Royal Kraal of Ulundi. The battle of Ulundi consisted of various smaller skirmishes and resulted in the final defeat of the Zulu Forces by a Cavalry charge which consisted of 17th Lancers, 1st Kings Dragoon Guards, Colonial Cavalry, Native units etc., Various smaller infantry actions also took place during the battle, British Regiments involved were the 1st and 13th Light Infantry, 21st Regiment Royal Scots Fusiliers. The Zulu King Cetshwayo was eventually captured and was exiled in London. The shield is of typical Zulu style and of the dimensions carried in the period 1879. The colouring of the shield is also interesting and the colours were used to denote various regiments and groups. It is in generally excellent condition with a fine patination overall and much of the original fur in place. There is an area of wear to the upper section where the warriors chin would have rested upon the shield in the combat position. There are one or two small stab marks, probably from British weapons. There is some folding to the base of the shield which is due to the item being stood for many years. The stick to the rear of the shield has been removed and replaced by the stabbing spear, this is absolutely normal and this is how thousands of these items were displayed in country houses throughout Great Britain and the Commonwealth after the Zulu defeat. The provenance of the shield is highly interesting. An auction in the North of England in 2004 contained a large collection and possibly one of the best collections of Zulu War memorabilia ever sold. The collection belonged to a Mr. Slack who at 62 after a lifetime of collecting decided to sell his collection, Mr. Slack bought his collection from various sources and he did receive some items which were formerly the property of a John Poyner, Poyner was the properties manager during the making of the famous film Zulu, he was tasked with much of the research into the props department, one of the places he did his research was the Natal Police Museum, he borrowed various items from their archives to be copied for the film, on the completion of the film the Natal Police gifted several of the items to him including this shield and spear which were picked up from the battle of Ulundi and stored within their museum. The lot consists of a photocopy of the lot numbers and the page from the auction catalogue, also there is a letter of provenance signed by J. Bullock Anderson, who is one of the partners of the auction house and the letter clearly states that the Zulu Assegai and shield were removed from the battlefield of Ulundi as formerly part of the collection of John Poyner, properties manager, during the making of the film Zulu, he was presented with these items by the academic staff of the Natal Mounted Police Museum from their historic collection. Further to this there is a large format newspaper article which is a report about the auction and sale, there are numerous colour photographs within the newspaper article and the largest photograph is of the auctioneer, a John Anderson, holding the same shield we are now lucky enough to own, as well as the auction catalogue. It is extremely rare to find Zulu shields with provenance from the battlefield and true Zulu shields are in themselves rare and desirable objects, but to find one in excellent condition with fine patination overall and an excellent and traceable provenance is of extreme rarity, coupled with the fact that the shield is linked to one of the most classic war films of all time we feel this is a most exciting opportunity and would be almost impossible to improve upon for the collector. The condition throughout is as mentioned above, stored and dusty, there is a good stiffness overall to the hide. There is a fine dark patination over the rear of the shield, the haft is in excellent condition for the spear with age cracking through its length, this is due to the expansion of the wood. There are one or two tiny holes from mice of some such. The leather thong area to the haft of the steel shaft is excellent and hard. The point itself is of good iron with a good sharpness throughout, a slightly blunted tip due to combat use. The lot comes complete with the letter from the auctioneers, a photocopy of the catalogue page with the lots marked upon and a copy of the newspaper article, the newspaper article is the genuine copy and not a photostat and the letter also is the genuine letter and not the photostat. The auction page catalogue is a photostat.

Code: 52956 Price: 2800.00 GBP


Blimey! Try this link: http://www.regimentals.co.uk/viewphoto.php?shoph=52956&phqu=10
Perhaps you should invest in an AppleMac.

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ZULU WAR TEMS FOR SALE
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