Native beauty
 

Hello,

A while ago, a knife listed as a native American piece went on the bay for wuite a bit: http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...0662&rd=1&rd=1

The knife is IMO magnificent, with a study blade and good craftsmanship. It strikes me as similar to a kindjal in some ways, and I am surprised by the quality of it. Does anyone have information on this type of knife and on which tribe produced them? Was the blade European or could it have been produced by First Nations people, just like the Tlingit people did?

Here is a pic from the listing for posterity.

Regards,
Emanuel

These blades were European made and these pieces were European pieces made for trade. I believe these are also called "trade blades" for trade to Native American peoples living in the Eastern and Plains regions. Very rare to find an authentic piece since they were not massed produced and few survived. Many copies are on the market now. If true, this is a great piece in fantastic condition.

Hi Manolo,

Interesting piece. This style of blade is referred to as a "Beaver Tail" knife and usually had imported blades. Most of the blades came from Sheffield England and were sold by the Hudson Bay Company. As Battara has stated there are many fakes. I have no idea if this is genuine or not.

Hope this helps
Jeff

I think these are called black dags or Blackfoot dags? The blades are of European manufacture. If the one on ebay is real which I doubt than the buyer got quite a bargain real dags go for 3 or 4 times more than what he paid.

Lew

Well ...
 

Looks too good to be true. ;)

Hi all,
Thanks for the info. It looks good, even if fake. I find it interesting that Amerindian craft is so greatly sought after, the prices seem to get atronomical. I saw a similar dagger on the internet, authentic it seems, and it was quite beautiful.

Best regards,
Emanuel