ratcheting mechanism on Spanish Navajas

Chris Evans · 5th July 2017, 04:05 AM

Fernando,

Thanks for posting the material on the navaja. I have that book and several others, but as you say nobody wants to commit themselves to an explanation.

Well, at least Abel Domenech tried.... His opinion re safety may or may not have been the main reason for the adoption of the carraca, but does make some kind of sense.

I think that nowadays it has become an expected feature by those who buy this obsolete knife - Makes a good conversation topic!

As for the date when the navaja appeared, that is also lost in the mist of time because there are no surviving specimens that predate 1699. In any event, dating navajas is very difficult because few had the year of manufacture stamped on them and the best one can do is to correlate the typology with paintings and other descriptions

Cheers
Chris

5th July 2017, 04:05 AM	#15
Chris Evans Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Australia Posts: 685	Fernando, Thanks for posting the material on the navaja. I have that book and several others, but as you say nobody wants to commit themselves to an explanation. Well, at least Abel Domenech tried.... His opinion re safety may or may not have been the main reason for the adoption of the carraca, but does make some kind of sense. I think that nowadays it has become an expected feature by those who buy this obsolete knife - Makes a good conversation topic! As for the date when the navaja appeared, that is also lost in the mist of time because there are no surviving specimens that predate 1699. In any event, dating navajas is very difficult because few had the year of manufacture stamped on them and the best one can do is to correlate the typology with paintings and other descriptions Cheers Chris