Fancy Handles & Bolsters oh my!

[Ray S]

   Haven't posted much in recent weeks due to some health issues so now that I am once again,"vertical and taking nourishment" I thought I would post up some pictures of knives with fancy handles and/or bolsters. Some are handled in sterling silver and some in carved aluminum or mother of pearl.The aluminum handled ones were made at a time(circa 1900)when that metal was almost as valuable as gold due to the difficulty in mining it.Once a practical method of extracting it from the ground was discovered the price dropped accordingly.
   Most fancy handled knives are what we would normally consider,"Sunday" knives;to be worn to church or some other event usually on the end of a gold chain attached to a pocket watch.These went out of fashion when wrissmurfches became popular to wear.Then they were relegated to a small leather purse to be carried in the pocket.
   I am only including a couple of so-called,"ladies' fruit knives" because I think they are a step up from the usual silver handled ones although I may make a separate post for those. Anyway here they are.
#1 A Press Button Knife Co. one armed man's knife with cast aluminum handles and advertising a company that made prosthetic devices. Supposedly this company gave these knives to veterans of the Spanish American war who had lost an arm or hand.
#2 A so-called,"penny knife";so named because most of them were very inexpensive costing only a penny or two.This one has a fancy carved wood handle.
#3 A Bingham Hardware knife sporting pearl handles;fancy cast bolsters;and a button hook and manicure blade.
#4 A Bonsa bartender's knife with a cap lifter incorporated into the master blade and a folding beverage can opener on the other side.

[Ray S]

Page two:
#1 Capital Cutlery Co. Germany whittler with fancy sterling silver handle(the other side is missing).
#2 Three Chinese(or maybe Japanese)souvenir knives with sheaths and handles made of carved bone segments from the 1960's.
#3 A small figural knife from France with horn handles pressed into the shape of the Eiffel Tower.
#4 E.Bonsmann Germany lobster ad knife for Bayer Pharmaceuticals in Spanish.

[Ray S]

Page Three
#1 & 2 EKA Eskilstuna lobster knife with handles of gold(plate)and enamelling.
#3 & 4 EKA Eskilstuna lobster ad knife for Ohio Rubber.

[Ray S]

Page three:
#1 Empire Knife Co. Winsted CT 2 blade pen with pearl handles and sterling silver beaded bolsters in original purse.
#2 Five knives from England & Germany with fluted handles and bolsters.
#3 Germania Cutlery Co. with stamped fancy one piece bolsters/handles.
#4 Hudson cutlery Co. Germany whittler with sterling silver handles.

[Ray S]

Page four:
#1 Humason & Beckley whittler with fancy sterling silver handles.
#2 2 blade marked Inoxiable(French maybe)with celluloid handles and different colored bolsters sawtooth fitted together.
#3 A bird handled knife from either Iraq or Lebanon.I have a fixed blade with the same handle and have seen entire tableware sets with the same type of handle.
#4 An I*XL gent's knife with sterling silver handles.

[Ray S]

Last one for now:
#1 A miniature Japanese multi-blade folder with engraved sterling silver handles.
#2 Knifblogat Eskilstuna 7 blade knife with gold washed etched handles.
#3 A multiblade knife with machine engraved handles and markings that look like possibly Indian cyphers and broad arrow mark.
#4 National Cutlery Works Germany with carved aluminum handles.

[David]

Ray your collection never ceases to amaze!           

[Poncho65]

Ray your collection never ceases to amaze!           

  and David, you took the words right out of my mouth it is exactly what I was thinking I was going to post as I was scrolling down

Some very nice blades, Ray

[gerleatherberman]

 

*What David and Poncho said! 

[Yadda]

+2

[SteveC]

+3   Thanks for posting Ray and glad you are feeling better !   

[Ray S]

Thanks for the kind words fellas. I'm still having some health issues but nothing I can't handle(I hope). In the meanwhile I guess I'll lay a few more on you.
#1 A Phillippine golang with the handle carved in the shape of a dog's head.
#2 A Precise lock back with etching all over and scrimshaw on the handles.
#3 A 4 blade gent's knife marked only with a Text S inside a shield.
#4 Not a knife but a pair of scissors and button hook inside a sterling silver knife handle.

[Ray S]

A few more:
#1A pair of Schrade model 215 Barlows with fancy bolsters.
#2 Thomson Cutlery Co.2 blade with carved aluminum handles.
#3 & 4 An unmarked whittler with carved steel handles engraved with different designs on either side with a gold wash.

[Aloha]

Oh My is exactly what I was thinking when scrolling through the pictures.  Such fancy knives with some neat features.  I really like the sterling silver ones.   

[Barry Rowland]

They're beautiful Ray, and glad you are feeling better!