Hi Gav,
I saw that paper quite some time ago. Despite that it contains some good information, I consider it misleading and wasn't overly impressed with his sources To be fair, there is precious little in English on the subject, save for one of Forton's books that carries captions to the photos in both languages.
There are many even in Spain who are so keen to mythologize the navaja as to ascribe its origins way back in time. I for myself side with Forton who to my mind convincingly argues that the navaja could only make its appearance after the Burbons ascended to the Spanish throne and out of fear of rebellion banned all effective weapons. Before that time, Spaniards had far better weapons at their disposal. This is not to say that razors and similar folders were not in use before 1700, for they were, but rather that a recognizable cut and thrust clasp knife just did not appear in Europe until after that time.
As an aside, I'll mention that the prevailing Spanish view is that they invented the navaja and after the Bourbons chased the best cutlers out of the country, they took their craft to neighbouring lands. I find this quite credible, because the early Italian clasp knives that I have seen are almost replicas of the Spanish ones, albeit of better quality.
Cheers
Chris
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