Beautiful knife
 

I am not into "Western" blades, but just could not ignore this one. I was not a bidder.
This is likely Mexican (the eagle head is a giveaway).
Look at the quality of deep engraving and the intricacy of the handle:
Assadullah Cancuni :)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=6625415228

Hi Ariel ,
I'm not so sure this is Mexican work ; the motifs are atypical for the stuff that I have seen from our brothers South of the Border .

It is indeed stunning work at any rate .

I was looking at that knife myself, but it went to high for my cheap
pocketbook :-) Not sure of the Mexican attribution, maybe Spanish
or Brazil? Wild guesses there. Pretty knife whoever and where ever
it come from.

Rich

My gut reaction from the decoration was India? just something about the bird. The scabbard is not very Indian? Saying that the bird appears to be a peacock with those little feathers on its head. I know a rich South American might have peacocks in his garden but it is not a motif from the Americas.

Look at the birds in this folk art painting from Mithila, modern day Bihar state, eastern India. The style strongly suggests an Indian origin.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v426/jamhappy/pea.jpg

Even better match, where is Baden Powell and his chums?

The bird thing on the knife has four legs?

It could be a Griffon, they too have an Indo/Persian origin. The one on the knife does not have the traditional European influenced heraldic stance.

The other bird thing has the tale of a wyvern, perhaps it is South American. :o Just similarity in folk art.

Hi All

I was one of the bidders. The knife is Spanish from the south or Italian from the Mediterranean. The stacked horn hilt is often seen on these knives and the bird is a spanish peacock.

http://www.photographycorner.com/for...ad.php?t=29201


Lew

Lew, I think the bird like images are inspired by the mythical Griffon and Wyvern. Spanish Peacock :confused:

http://www.bird-breeds.com/Peacock.htm

Tim

The griffon has an eagle beak or head and the body of a lion or cat like creature. The bird on the knife has a peacock head but I think I see what looks like hind legs its hard to tell. Here is a link to another dagger with a stacked horn hilt. Seller claims its Mexican but I think its European.

http://www.collectorsfirearms.com/k28.htm

Lew

I think you may well right Lew. I like the depiction of soldiers? with plumed helmets on the other knife. I would have thought Mexican folk art would have some more native references in the decorative motif. The quality of the knife manufacture, the beauty of the naive art all add up to something special in my mind.

Lew and Tim,
Why do you think the one Lew shows is Spanish? The seller, who presumably had some info, called it Mexican. What ground do we have to disbelieve him?
The "Spanish" motives in the depiction of a soldier? Well, this is a very expensive knife, probably hunting and must have belonged to a wealthy man (likely proud of his European heritage). Do we expect him to have engravings of Mexican folk art? Pinatas? Aztec symbology?
Here is another one (just ended), defined as Mexican: stacked handle, flat-headed eagle pommel and engravings that have some resemblance to the arabesque engravings on the blade of the knife in question.
I see no reason Mexican artisans could not produce high quality knives with European motives.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWA%3AIT&rd=1

Ariel

The knives I have seen even the nice quality ones from Mexico do not compare in quality to the knife in the link I provided. It might of came out of Mexico but it was probably imported from Spain. I think I saw a similar dagger in a recent thread within the last month or so. I will need to do a search on the forum.

Lew

Perhaps, Ernesto E. can help us: he is from Mexico.
Ernesto, are you around?