Small sickle. Bukhara, 19th century

[fernando]

Looks like they all use straight blades .


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[milandro]

quill cutters are generally straight there is really no need to cut pulling toward oneself (which is instead suggested by de hawkbill shape), in fact the name pen knife is the name left to this day and indicating generally a folding knife of a small size which a blade initially meant to do that, from the function of cutting quills

( the latin for quill is penna where the name from" pen" comes from)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penknife

this blade suggests the need to cut pulling towards the cutter or to make a round motion with the cut (as in when you want to do some types of, draft as in putting two pieces of plant one into the other)

[fernando]

Originally Posted by milandro

...( the latin for quill is penna where the name from" pen" comes from)...

In Portuguese, "pena", as also for feather .



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[milandro]

yes, in many languages feather in Latin (pluma) is the root of the French word for pen, Plume

[fernando]

Originally Posted by fernando

Looks like they all use straight blades ...

Unless we are talking about the 'mechanized' system, with their luxury versions. I know i have approached this in my post #28 ... but never get tired to show this beautiful thing. Sorry guys .



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[ariel]

The overall configuration of the blade of a pen knife is largely irrelevant: all it needs is to have a thin and sharp blade and a sharp point to make a slit in the tip of the pen.
In fact, the edge on that knife is either straight or minimally concave. Either, or especially the latter, will be very convenient for the task. Oriental cutlers were artistically more inventive than their European colleagues: witness the fancy blunt side with golden decorations: both are absolutely unnecessary for any cutting function but are very pretty. Reed pen, quill pen,- the principle is the same: they need re-sharpening, i.e. re-newing the tip.

As to peeling apples, pomegranates or oranges ( alas, not being grown in Central Asia), that's what servants are for:-)

[fernando]

Originally Posted by ariel

The overall configuration of the blade of a pen knife is largely irrelevant: all it needs is to have a thin and sharp blade and a sharp point to make a slit in the tip of the pen.
In fact, the edge on that knife is either straight or minimally concave. Either, or especially the latter, will be very convenient for the task. Oriental cutlers were artistically more inventive than their European colleagues: witness the fancy blunt side with golden decorations: both are absolutely unnecessary for any cutting function but are very pretty. Reed pen, quill pen,- the principle is the same: they need re-sharpening, i.e. re-newing the tip...

Vicit ... sed non persuasum .

Originally Posted by ariel

...As to peeling apples, pomegranates or oranges ( alas, not being grown in Central Asia), that's what servants are for:-)

Possibly servants were also used to resharpen quills . Talking of extremisms, i have once read that their tongues were used to wet the post stamps of their masters during colonialism.

[Gavin Nugent]

Olufsen noted that the pichoq attached in pairs were often used by the cooks in prominent families.

This is certainly from a person/family of standing to afford such a piece, and perhaps it too was used in the kitchen and is a bird's beak paring knife.

Gavin