i would caution against assigning any deep and hidden meaning just yet. remember occam's razor.
i am reminded of my barrel knife (posted in the eth. folding knives thread which has just been resurrected).
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Originally Posted by kronckew
another ethnic folder i like is the barrel knife from sweden, they are each unique and the parts are not interchangeable.
this is sometimes referred to as an '1874' model as that was when it was 'patented' in the USA by a maker who had learned to make them in sweden, one of the swedish makers, john engstrum stamped his with the date he started making them, also 1874, this is NOT necessarily the mfg. date, he made them from 1874 thru 1918 and all were stamped 1874. they were made from 1864-1925 by the major mfg. mine is a p. holmberg, made between 1900-1920, 2.75 in. barrel.
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the '1874' is thus a dubious 'patent' date in one case*, but a date the maker started making date in another, and a 'date' stamped onto many similar knives for almost 50 years.
sometimes numbers are just numbers. sometimes year markings have mundane explanations.
* - p.s. - i understand someone has recently 'patented' the wheel in australia as for some reason, no one had previously patented it there. all hail the inventor of the wheel, he's australian... but no relation to 1874.