19th century corvo for discussion

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by motan

Hi Detlef,
A good find and a great collection of old Corvos. I know the history, but not much about the knives themselves. The handle construction and design are Spanish influence, of course, and you see it in many different Spanish (ex) colonial knives like Brazilian faca de ponta and Canary islands knives, but I don't know much else.
Why do you think it is an older one? How did these knives develop? Could you say something about this?
Greetings, Eytan

I agree, while the information I just posted (#6) is terribly inadequate, I'm not sure how much else there is. I'm glad you noticed the Spanish influence. How did the knives develop ? Maybe from a tool like a grape knife? How do we tell the old ones? good question as I dont think they are usually dated.

[Sajen]

Thanks to all for the interest. All that I personally know about the history of corvos Jim has summarized already.
I have attached a picture of some old/antique so called "Hippen", German pruning knives. Vintner knives from Germany and France have a very similar style. So the development is better visible.

Why do I think that my new one is an old/early one? First, look to the used handle material by this one and the ones posted in #4, it's always brass and/or copper between horn and/or bone, in one case it's leather (the one with black handle and ruler), by the ones I've posted in #5 you see by the stacked handles always stained disks.
Second, look at the bolster area, by the ones posted in #4 they nearly always worked very rusticly, they developed to the typical fat point seen by nearly all examples in #5.
This is what I have noticed and let me think that the ones with tang in up could be earlier, like said, a theory.

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Jim McDougall

... How did the knives develop ? Maybe from a tool like a grape knife? ...

"The exact origin of the Chilean Corvo cannot yet be clarified. Some authors speculate that it could be related to a white weapon brought by the first Spanish conquerors, the Janyar, a curved short sword of Arab origin that had entered the Iberian Peninsula after the invasion of the Moors. Be that as it may, the Corvo would be a widely used instrument in our country in colonial times, especially by the so-called "Chilean Roto" (the gañán, huaso, miner or cattle worker) for their work tasks and also as a defense weapo. Carlos López Urrutia, in his book “The Pacific War: 1879-1884 ″, explains that, "the famous Chilean Corvo was not a military weapon, but was usually used by agricultural workers and miners, as it was a very useful tool for the performance of their work ”.

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by fernando

"The exact origin of the Chilean Corvo cannot yet be clarified. Some authors speculate that it could be related to a white weapon brought by the first Spanish conquerors, the Janyar, a curved short sword of Arab origin that had entered the Iberian Peninsula after the invasion of the Moors. Be that as it may, the Corvo would be a widely used instrument in our country in colonial times, especially by the so-called "Chilean Roto" (the gañán, huaso, miner or cattle worker) for their work tasks and also as a defense weapo. Carlos López Urrutia, in his book “The Pacific War: 1879-1884 ″, explains that, "the famous Chilean Corvo was not a military weapon, but was usually used by agricultural workers and miners, as it was a very useful tool for the performance of their work ”.

Thank you so much Fernando! Those are outstanding and most helpful insights that really present a much more detailed look at the likely evolution of these unusual knives. It is interesting how many edged weapons evoolved out of agricultural tools and implements. I really appreciate the references you always cite as well, as your specialized access to these which are not typically found in the Engljsh language sphere is so very helpful.

Well noted on the raven term also, I had not realized corvo meant curved but was thinking of the corvus term, which apparently refers to the Raven's hooked beak.

This is the kind of information I had been looking for to add to and correct my notes .

[fernando]

The notes on the Corvo courtesy:

https://www.guioteca.com/mitos-y-eni...cito-de-chile/

And by the way, raven in Portuguese translates to "Corvo" ... but that is a different deal .

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by fernando

The notes on the Corvo courtesy:

https://www.guioteca.com/mitos-y-eni...cito-de-chile/

Thank you for the link Fernando, I've noticed it some time ago but forget about it.

Regards,
Detlef

[fernando]

You're welcome Detlef .

.

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by fernando

You're welcome Detlef .

.

I like this picture more.

Quotation from the above given link: "...not to mention, in rural areas, it's one of the most popular weapons of bandits, rustlers, and broken ones in general." They speak from the early 1800s.