Tumi

This article is about the Peruvian ceremonial knife. For other uses, see Tumi (disambiguation).

Sican Culture Ceremonial Knife (Tumi) held at the Birmingham Museum of Art

Tumi

The Tumi is a sacrificial ceremonial axe, or knife as it is most commonly referred to, distinctly characterized by a semi-circular blade, made of either bronze, copper, gold-alloy, wood, or silver alloy and is often inlayed with semi-precious stones such as lapis lazuli.^[1] Tumis are most often associated with Pre-Inca cultures in the Peruvian Coastal Region and in some cases with the Inca culture itself. The most common examples of the tumi are associated with the Peruvian cultures of the Chimor (also referred to as the Chimu, which represents the style of art from this culture), ad the Lambayeque (also known as the Sipan or Sican). In Andean mythology, the Moche, Chimu and Incas were descendants of the Sun God, Inti, who was worshiped annually with an extravagant celebration known as the Inti Raymi, which is still alluded to today in the form of the Inti Raymi Festival.^[1] The festival took place at the end of the potato and maize harvest in order to thank the Sun for the abundant crops or to ask for better crops during the next season. During this important religious ceremony, the High Priest would sacrifice a completely black or white llama. Using a tumi, he would open the animal's chest and with his hands pull out its throbbing heart, lungs and viscera, so that observing those elements he could foretell the future. Later, the animal and its parts were completely incinerated.

Other Andean cultures such as the Paracas have used the tumi for the neurological procedure of skull trepanation. Many of these operations were carefully performed, suggesting that the surgery was done for the relief of some body disturbance other than that associated with injury, perhaps an organic or mental condition.^[1] The tumi knives used in the earlier cultures of Peru, such as the Paracas, were likely different in composition than those of the later Lambayeque and Chimu, as tumis from these cultures were only functional in a symbolic ceremonial manner, to do the use of soft metals.^[2] These soft metals would not have allowed for the actual killing of animal or cutting of any kind of flesh.^[3]

Tumi knives were produced for ritual use by elite members of society which included them being used in elite burial ceremonies.^[4] On November 21, 2006, archaeologists announced that they had unearthed 22 graves in northern Peru containing pre-Inca artifacts. Among the artifacts were the first tumi knives ever discovered by archaeologists. All previous examples had been recovered from grave looters.^[5]

In 1936 a tumi was discovered in the valley of Batan Grande, Illimo, Lambayeque, Peru. It is really more an ax than a knife with a weight of 992 grams, height 41 cm. This tumi is believed to have the figure of Naylamp on its top, as many tumis are thought to have a depiction of this symbolic figure. Naylamp was a mythic hero and founder of the Lambayeque, or Sican, culture, that was begotten from a totemic bird with his same name, Ñaylamp. The legend goes, that when Ñaylamp died, or disappeared, after founding the Lambayeque culture, he grew wings and flew into the sky.^[6] This hero-king founder of Lambayeque built a temple named Chot where he placed a large stone that he called Llampallec, which means statue of Ñaylamp. In this temple many ceremonies and rituals were offered using a tumi. The knife or Tumi of Illimo is represented with a mask of a bird, wings and bird shaped eyes. The mythic stories about the bird named Ñaylamp and the hero warrior founder of Lambayeque are represented in the knife or Tumi of Illimo by a birdman. Tumi knives often include depictions of birds or winds in order to symbolize Ñaylamp as well.^[6]

In modern Peru, to hang a tumi on a wall means good luck. The tumi is the national symbol of Peru and has become a symbol used in Peruvian tourism publicity and can be found depicted on tourist gifts such as mugs and key chains.^[1]

References

1 2 3 4 "Tumi, the ceremonial knife | Discover Peru". www.discover-peru.org. Retrieved 2016-10-14.
↑ Douglas, John H. (September 2, 1978). "Golden Clues to the Mystery of the Andes". Science News. Society for Science & the Public. 114 No. 10: 171–173.
↑ Dixon, Christine; Ford, Micheline; Fraresso, Carole; Fyfe, Andrew; Holmquist, Ulla; Maxwell, Simeran; Medina Castro, Maria Ysabel (2013). Gold and the Incas: Lost Worlds of Peru. National Gallery of Australia. p. 205.
↑ Birmingham Museum of Art (2010). Birmingham Museum of Art: Guide to the Collection. London, UK: GILES. p. 91. ISBN 978-1-904832-77-5. Retrieved 2011-07-19.
↑ "Peruvian archaeologists excavate first 'tumi' knives from pre-Inca tombs". Associated Press. 2006-11-21. Retrieved 2008-11-24.
1 2 Scott, John F. (1999). Latin American Art: Ancient to Modern. Gainesville: University Press of Florida. p. 128.

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Knives and daggers

List of daggers List of blade materials

Types of knives	Aircrew Survival Egress Knife Athame Balisong/Butterfly Ballistic Ballpoint pen knife Bayonet Boline Bolo Boning Boot knife Bowie Bread knife Cane knife Cheese knife Chef's knife Cleaver Clip point Combat knife Commander Corvo CQC-6 Deba bōchō Diving knife Drop point Electric knife Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife Gerber Mark II Ginsu Grapefruit knife Gravity knife Gunong Hunting knife Jacob's ladder Karambit Kīla Kirpan Kitchen knife Kukri Laguiole knife Machete Mandau Mezzaluna Misericorde Mora knife Multi-tool Nakiri bōchō Navaja Neck knife Nontron knife Opinel knife Palette knife Pantographic knife Parang Penknife Penny knife Pocket knife Putty knife Puukko Rampuri Resolza Sabatier Sami knife Santoku SARK Scalpel Seax Sgian dubh Sharpfinger Shiv Sliding knife Smatchet SOG Knife Straight razor Strider SMF Survival knife Swiss Army knife Switchblade Taping knife Throwing knife Tomato knife Trench knife Tumi Ulu Utility knife Warrior knife X-Acto Yanagi ba Yatagan

Types of daggers	Anelace Applegate–Fairbairn fighting knife Arkansas toothpick BC-41 Bagh naka Baselard Bichuwa Bollock dagger Cinquedea Dirk Ear dagger Emeici Facón French Nail Hachiwara Hunting dagger Janbiya Kaiken Kalis Kard Katar Khanjali Khanjar Kris Mark I trench knife Ocean Edge Knife Parrying dagger Poignard Push dagger Rondel dagger Seme Shobo Sica Stiletto Tantō Marine Raider stiletto V-42 stiletto Yarará Parachute Knife Yoroidōshi

Knife manufacturers	Aitor Al Mar Knives American Tomahawk Company Bear MCG Benchmade Böker Buck Knives Caber Camillus Cutlery Company Cattaraugus Cutlery Company Chris Reeve Knives Cold Steel Columbia River Knife & Tool Cuisinart Cutco Cutlery DOVO Solingen Dexter-Russell Dirte Knives Eikhorn Ek Commando Knife Co. Emerson Knives Erizo F. Dick Fällkniven FAMAE Fiskars Füritechnics Gerber Legendary Blades Global Golok Hanwei Imperial Schrade J. A. Henckels Ka-Bar Kershaw Knives KitchenAid Korin Japanese Trading Company Kyocera Leatherman Mad Dog Knives MercWorx Microtech Knives Morseth Murphy Knives Ontario Knife Company Opinel Pro-Tech Knives Randall Made Knives Ranz Rigid Knives Rösle SOG Specialty Knives Sabatier Aîné & Perrier Spyderco Strider Knives Survival Aids TEKNA Thiers Issard Tramontina Victorinox Vox Knives W. R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co. Walther arms Wenger Western Knife Company Wilkinson Sword Windlass Steelcrafts Wüsthof Yarara Ltd

Knifemakers	A.G. Russell American Bladesmith Society Rex Applegate James Black Blackie Collins John Nelson Cooper Ernest Emerson Jerry Fisk Phill Hartsfield Bill Harsey Jr. Gil Hibben Knifemakers' Guild Zanjan Knifemakers Jimmy Lile Bob Loveless Bob Lum William F. Moran Ken Onion Ralph Osterhout Bo Randall Chris Reeve Jody Samson William Scagel Mike Snody Robert Terzuola Michael Walker Buster Warenski Daniel Winkler

Book:Knives and daggers Category:Knives / Daggers

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Tumi

See also

References

External links