Does anyone have more information on these 2? They way over 600 grams/piece and measure 19x15 centimeters. I know some of these originate from Katanga/Congo. Is it possible to date these? I got them as a gift from a friend, who knows I don't collect it, so I will be selling/swapping it eventually, but wish to know everything about them first. They look the same, except for the colour. One is in yellowish copper, where the other one is more red. Is that due to the copper, or the toning? What value do these have? Thanks in advance Jos
Jos,these are definitely Katangan cross 'coins'.As to their value,I wouldn't know.I can tell you that Katanga's coins (bronze 1 Franc & 5 Francs of 1961) actually depicts the cross 'coins'. Aidan.
Thanks for your reply. I recognized them too from the Katanga coins. Just want to find more information about them. I've posted it on another forum too. But I didn't get that much information. http://www.coinpeople.com/index.php?showtopic=12072&pid=270120 More is welcome Regards Jos
Sorry,Jos.I haven't got any more information,apart from the fact that Katanga was formerly a Belgian territory. Aidan.
No problem. They look really great, and I'm a bit amazed that no-one is really interested in these. Or are these more seen as artefacts instead of coins? Jos
Please forgive my ignorance, but is anyone sure that these were used as money? During what time period? Thanks
Jos,these are regarded as aprimitive 'coins' in the same category as the Manilla rings of Nigeria,cowrie shells, the stone 'coins' of Yap,& the 'pennies' of Liberia. Aidan.
I knew a guy from Yap (several people from Micronesia or Marshal Islands) which was the first time I learned of the giant stone money from there... since then I have learned how they were used and what not but know almost nothing about the cross money. Please post about what you find here.
Jos, maybe this will help. The Identification Guide that I have list the following: 1700 - 1800's Katanga cross or Baluba cross. Large X shaped cast, copper cross, usually 9" across and "thick. Authentic ones usually have a raised central ridge. Circulated price $125.00. Lou
There is already some information given by the users on coinpeople. Check the link in one of my earlier messages. They were used for a long period of time, so it's very hard to determine the date on these, since there are no marks or symbols on them, except for the stickfigure of a man on the front. Regards Jos
Here are a few bits that might be of interest to you Chard Coins The Katanga Cross or Handa A Katanga cross was a form of ancient money used in this area from about the tenth century until about 1920, and called "handa". They varied in size and weight, but typically were about 8 inches across, and from about half a pound to 2 1/2 pounds. They were cast by pouring molten copper into moulds made in the sand. A typical cross One cross was worth ten kilos of flour, five fowls, three kilos of rubber or six axes. They were also used to purchase a wife. One source quotes a bride price as fourteen large crosses, one goat, one gun and one female slave In addition to their use as a medium of exchange or currency, they also served as regalia, raw material, insignia and emblems. George manz coins Katanga Cross. Katanga Tribe. Africa. Copper. Made by pouring copper into sand molds. According to Opitz, 2 were worth a gun. One bride price consisted of 14 large crosses, 1 female goat, 1 gun and 1 female slave. Giant 11 1/2 inches. Elgin Coin Club X-shaped copper ingots like this one are often called "Katanga Crosses." They are named after a region in Africa along the Kasai River in Zaire (now Congo again), one of the areas where they have been found. They were called locally "handa." The ingots weigh anywhere from around one half pound to two and half pounds, but their exact value in units of weight is unknown. For centuries these crosses served as indications of wealth and were used as bridewealth payments, trade, currency, and burial rituals. Large crosses were convenient for stacking in royal treasuries and for transporting to areas of heavy demand. The Congolese regarded the non-ferrous metals--copper, lead, and tin-- as very precious materials. Metals were a widespread means of exchange and important in settling social contracts, like marriage. Early in this century, one cross might have purchased five to six chickens, two lengths of good fabric, eight to nine pounds of rubber, or six axes. From very early times, people in the Congo knew how to work copper, a native metal locally available. They used open-faced casting to make the crosses. The metalworker melted the copper to 1,083 degrees Centigrade in a clay crucible. He poured the molten metal into a cross-shaped open mold of clay, stone, or a hollow depression in the ground. When the metal cooled and hardened, he removed the it from its setting. Some crosses were cast by a double mold process as well. Collect Plaza Primitive Money KATANGA (SHABA) CROSS Shaba is the historical region in southeastern Congo, bordering Lake Tanganyika to the east, Zambia to the south, and Angola to the west. It is coextensive with modern Katanga province. The region's name, Shaba, during the Zairean period, comes from the Swahili word for 'copper', and the region's mines yield most of Congo's copper, cobalt, uranium, zinc, cadmium, silver, germanium, coal, gold, iron, manganese, and tin. The local people were utilizing those minerals long before the arrival of Europeans in the 19th Century. As such, a curious form of money, made of the native copper ( molded in the dry sand ), took hold; the Shaba Cross. These were in fairly consistent use from the 16th Century onward into the 1900's when the Belgians colonized the region. Each weighs approximately 1.2 pounds ( or 600 grams ) and measures 8 inches or 20 centimeters across. They had a very definite value in this southern region of Africa, for example ; for a single Shaba Cross, one could get about 22 pounds ( 10 kilos ) of local manioc flour or 5 chickens and maybe a rooster, if the bargainer was tough. For 15 Crosses, you could have yourself a young wife, a female slave, a goat and a few axe heads. These are all in nice condition, considering their age. De Orc :thumb:
