My Birthday Present: Knife for ID Please

fearn · 6th November 2008, 02:11 AM

Hi CourseEight,

Thanks for the information on the scabbard. I guess the question is that if you think it's been remanufactured, what is your sense of the relative age of the pieces? I won't disagree that it could have been rebuilt, but we're then left with a question of what the original pieces were, and what the current piece was supposed to do, other than be a work of art.

Hi bjeweled,

I was certainly thinking of US coins when I looked at that assemblage of designs, but reading the Wikipedia article on the fasces, the image also turned up in France from 1610-1815 in architecture, often associated with other Roman imagery (like Bacchus?). I haven't gone looking for historical fasces in Germany (I dislike wading through Nazi references), but perhaps the knife is from France?

As for the bottlecap, Wikipedia also kicked up a reference for that, and the first patent for a bottlecap was 1892. I think most of us think the knife is older than that, so it's probably not a purpose-designed bottle opener. I've got to admit, I'd thought of that too. It doesn't look like quite the right shape to pull a cork either.

Hmmm. Maybe it's a crochet hook?

F

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6th November 2008, 02:11 AM	#25
fearn Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,247	Hi CourseEight, Thanks for the information on the scabbard. I guess the question is that if you think it's been remanufactured, what is your sense of the relative age of the pieces? I won't disagree that it could have been rebuilt, but we're then left with a question of what the original pieces were, and what the current piece was supposed to do, other than be a work of art. Hi bjeweled, I was certainly thinking of US coins when I looked at that assemblage of designs, but reading the Wikipedia article on the fasces, the image also turned up in France from 1610-1815 in architecture, often associated with other Roman imagery (like Bacchus?). I haven't gone looking for historical fasces in Germany (I dislike wading through Nazi references), but perhaps the knife is from France? As for the bottlecap, Wikipedia also kicked up a reference for that, and the first patent for a bottlecap was 1892. I think most of us think the knife is older than that, so it's probably not a purpose-designed bottle opener. I've got to admit, I'd thought of that too. It doesn't look like quite the right shape to pull a cork either. Hmmm. Maybe it's a crochet hook? F