ABSTRACT
All agricultural implements and moreover axes, arrowheads, assegais, knives, and so on, were produced in the Bavenda country until European industry with its cheap productions killed the interesting and ancient native iron industry. The art of pottery is almost entirely in the hands of the BaLemba women, although to-day there are also a few Venda potters who have learnt their trade from the BaLemba. The calabash, tshikumbu, is used for holding water and beer. The vessel is made by cutting off the stalk-end of a suitably shaped calabash to form a mouth 3 to 4 inches in diameter. The khamelo is made from a solid block of wood, 18 inches high and 6 inches in diameter, with a thick handle running down the whole length. Iron smelting among the Venda is extinct, but it used to play an important part in their industrial life; they probably brought the art with them when they first came to the Zoutpansberg.
