Odd Navaja For Comment

[Chris Evans]

Hi RobT,

I have a nagging suspicion that these navajas were made for sale as souveniers well into the 19th century, perhaps harking back to an earlier era. I base this on the very poor level of workmanship, many being virtually disfunctional, and that the one I have still has decorative paint on the blade.

Cheers
Chris

[RobT]

Hi Chris Evans,

You may be right about your tourist suspicions but a 13.25” blade seems a bit hefty for a souvenir. Especially when compared to the so called vendetta folding knives made in Theirs for sale to tourists in Corsica. I doubt any of those knives had blades longer than six inches. I agree that the level of workmanship on the Santa Cruz de Mudela knives isn’t very high but it is no worse than what is typically seen on 19th to early 20th century penny knives sold in the US. My navaja is certainly very rickety now but it is probably well over 100 years old (maybe even 200 or more years old). When it was new however, I bet it would have been sturdy enough for a knife fight. I certainly would trust a carraca lock over the slip joint lock on a fancy French Navaja and so did the French because their early WWI trench knife was a palm knife with a teat lock and a ring pull. Consider this scenario. These SCM navaja weren’t meant to be tools and, were probably only very rarely used for fighting. Their main purpose was to add a bit of macho swagger to the costume of men with little money. I am sure they were also sold to tourists but I would bet that their main market was domestic.

Sincerely,
RobT

[Chris Evans]

Originally Posted by RobT

a 13.25” blade seems a bit hefty for a souvenir.

Hi RobT,

Not really, I have some very hefty navajas in my collection that were obviously display pieces and not intended for use, as evidenced by paint and etch decorated blades without any signs of ever having been sharpened or used. This includes a very disfunctional specimen akin to yours that still has the original paint on the blade.

I would go as far as to say that probably the majority of old navajas being traded today were originally bought as souvenirs/display pieces, because of the above stated decoration and the lack of wear and tear on the blades, which would ensue with use. This tradition lived on into the 20th century with huge numbers of navajas with etched & enamelled blades bearing taurine themes and the ubiquitous `Recuerdo de......' (souvenir) caption.

Could this knife have actually been made in Morocco? I have never seen a navaja back spring that looks like this.

Well, `navajas' were made in other parts of the world, including India, but yours is typical of those attributed to have been made in Santa Cruz de Mudela in the early 1800's. In Forton's magisterial `Navajas Antiguas' there is a section dedicated to them.

I have never seen a navaja back spring that looks like this. The 20th century style back springs (like those on Okapi knives) are very flat

When sheet steel became available in Spain, towards 1900, their cutlers changed tack and came up with with `muelle de teja’ backsprings that sat on the top of the handle and saved much labour. I am not sure where these back springs were first used as I have seen a few very old hefty ones that were on knives manufactured in other countries and made from forgings.

If you are keen to collect or study navajas, I suggest that you consider getting a copy of Forton’s book which is richly illustrated and is an essential guide. Its full title is `Navajas Antiguas Las Mejores Piezas De coleccion' by Rafael Martinez Del Peral Y Forton

Cheers
Chris

[Chris Evans]

Hi RobT,

This website has an article on navajas from Santa Cruz de Mudela:
https://navaja19.es/navajas-de-santa-cruz-de-mudela-21

Cheers
Chris

[RobT]

Hi Chris Evans,

I will freely admit to very little knowledge of navajas and I thank you for the information you provided to me in this post. I had never before seen a navaja back spring like the one I posted and you gave me not only country of origin for it but also city of origin and historical context. I am aware that the muelle de teja back spring has been adapted world wide and have three Indian navajas. A great design is bound to be copied.
What I ask you to consider is that lack of wear and tear on a 19th century (or before) item does not necessarily mean that it was made for sale as a souvenir. For example, many small swords were made in the latter half of the 18th century. They all were made to be fully functional weapons but few were actually used or even meant to be used as such. They were simply status symbols that were part of upper class male attire in the culture for which they were made. Any damage the vast majority of these swords sustained was a result of frequent carry, not combat. Currently, many “divers” watches are made to be waterproof when SCUBA diving but few are purchased or worn for that purpose. Likewise, although SUVs are designed to be capable of off road travel, the only wear and tear the average one is likely to suffer is what it gets during the daily commute on paved roads.
I thank you for the source, Navajas Antiguas Las Mejores Piezas De coleccion' by Rafael Martinez Del Peral Y Forton. Unfortunately, my Spanish is very limited. I struggled with the link you just gave me about Santa Cruz de Mudela navajas and had to use Google translate to make sure I had read it correctly.

Sincerely,
RobT

[Chris Evans]

Hi RobT

Originally Posted by RobT

Hi Chris Evans,

I thank you for the source, Navajas Antiguas Las Mejores Piezas De coleccion' by Rafael Martinez Del Peral Y Forton. Unfortunately, my Spanish is very limited.

The book has 237 photos of navajas, with captions in both Spanish and English that describe the locality of manufacture and age.

Cheers
Chris