Presenting the tools of the elephant hunter king Ama Kông.
On the morning of February 15th, Kham Phet Lao, the son of the elephant hunter king Ama Kong (residing in Ko Tam hamlet, Ea Tu commune, Buon Ma Thuot city, Dak Lak province), donated his father's set of tools for hunting wild elephants to the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology as an exhibit.
The elephant handle consists of 20 tools, typically including Plei Mat – Mac Kađiêk (in the Bơ Nong language - Lao) - a rattan whip used by elephant handlers to control domesticated elephants; Kok-Mak Ngok - a wooden hammer carved from Cam Xe wood used to control elephants during hunting; Mong Tonggơr – Mei Kăn Thưng - a bamboo piece attached to the end of a noose, used to thread through the leg of a wild elephant; Sreh Muk- Pâo Muk - a woven bag made of forest vines to hold the elephant king's personal belongings; Kreo-Khõ: a wooden spear with an iron tip used to control and train elephants…
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| Elephant hunting equipment that has existed for 200 years. |
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| Ceremony for the donation of elephant hunting tools to the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology. |
Mr. Kham Phet Lao said: this set of elephant hunting tools has a history of nearly 200 years, passed down from his grandfather Y Thu Kul (born in 1828 - also known as King of Elephants Khun Ju Nop) - the founder of the profession of hunting and taming wild elephants - to his father Ama Kong.
During his lifetime, Ama Kông (1910 – 2012) hunted and tamed nearly 300 wild elephants and invented the famous "vitality-enhancing" medicine named after him. Before his death, he passed on the medicine, as well as the elephant hunting tools, to his eleventh son, Khăm Phết Lào.
Mr. Kham Phet Lao currently possesses three sets of elephant hunting tools passed down from his ancestors. Of these, the set donated to the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology is the most complete. He plans to auction off the other two sets for charity.
According to Vietnam.net
