Multitool.org Forum
Tool Talk => Collector's Forum => Topic started by: churchill25 on September 25, 2010, 11:54:36 PM
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Hello,
I've had this knife on my desk for years,,, thought it might be of interest.
Anyone know more about the origins? W.H.MORLEY & SONS AUSTRIA
Thanks...
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Wow, what an awesome knife!! :tu: And it looks to be in pretty fine shape too. :)
Afraid I'm not much help with the details about it though. :-\ We do know that W. H. Morley was not itself a company, but was an import brand used by A. Kastor & Bros of New York. I thought that all of the knives so marked were made in Germany, but apparently this is not the case if yours is stamped Austria. :)
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Thanks, any idea on the date of production?
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The other Morley knives I know of had a production date of around 1920, so perhaps yours is from the same era?
By the way, are the scales on yours made of ivory do you think?
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How can you tell for sure if it's ivory?
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Thanks for posting it here - that's a wonderful piece :D
You can test for ivory by poking it with a very hot pin. Ivory will not be damaged, all other celluloid and plastic type materials will melt a bit.
Here's an article on ivory worth a read: http://www.asian-arts.net/oriental-treats/fake.htm
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Before you go poking it, I just found this caveat which I hadn't thought of!
"Never test Ivory with a Hot Pin or Needle! Not only is this an inaccurate test, but you run the risk of damaging the item your testing. Some forms of early celuloid and bakelites are have more value than original ivory. If you are not sure if the item is Ivory, Please take it to a professional for testing. Most antique dealers can tell real ivory from imitation simply by the look and feel of the item.Some immatation Ivory, such as "Ivorine" is actually made from powdered Ivory so this test is totally useless in this situation. This type of test should only be used as a Last Resort and only then by a professional!"
So, there are other ways too :D
Microscopic evaluation seems to be the least obtrusive way.
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I tried the hot pin test before I noticed your last post, no hole, smell or burn at all.
BUT,,, it has an opalescent look to it,,, could be mother-of pearl?
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Maybe. Just hit google - lots of info to be had :)
There's also a lot of different types of ivory, both elephant and otherwise.
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it appears to be mother of pearl in the picture........
the knife is looking like a product of the 1890s to ww1....
these multi bladed handmade knives were a common product from small workshops in that period in Austria, Bavaria and baden wurttemberg... with many specializing in just these items.
but then they were still making these pieces in these areas till ww2..
it is a higher end pocket knife, and quite collectible.
dont poke it with a pin
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I'm bumping this because it's a really cool conversation piece. These knives are around the size of a Director in length and as wide as an Explorer.
Here's one that may be getting a facelift shortly:
(http://i53.tinypic.com/14t4pi0.jpg)
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Ooooh, do be careful with it Saz :) That's a real piece of history you have there :salute:
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I´m not an expert, in fact I´m far from being an expert, but I have some doubts I want to share here (so maybe I can learn)
There are slots for toothpick and tweezers. When did the Swiss makers introduce them? Have there ever been toothpicks on a SAK that were NOT made from plastic?
Morley is not an Austrian name. Yes, there could have been be a man named Morley who migrated to Austria and made knives here, but if so, why did he stamp the blades in English?
The German version would be "Morley und Söhne, Österreich". Still, the Austrian monarchy died in 1918, the first republic called Austria was born then. It did again 1938, when Austria became a part of the German Reich. While it is still possible that someone before 1918 used Austria as a blade stamp (a part of the country was called Austria), but normally they would have used the city of origin, so "Vienna" or "Linz" or something. Similar the "Solingen" stamped blades, without Germany.
Anyways, it is an interesting piece, and seems to be quite old. I guess it was made AFTER WWII, but I do not have any proof for that. So maybe you have a really old, odd gem there.
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I'm bumping this because it's a really cool conversation piece. These knives are around the size of a Director in length and as wide as an Explorer.
Here's one that may be getting a facelift shortly:
If someone else wants to give new life to this one, go ahead. I'll let this one pass. Sorry, Sazabi.
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I´m not an expert, in fact I´m far from being an expert, but I have some doubts I want to share here (so maybe I can learn)
There are slots for toothpick and tweezers. When did the Swiss makers introduce them? Have there ever been toothpicks on a SAK that were NOT made from plastic?
Morley is not an Austrian name. Yes, there could have been be a man named Morley who migrated to Austria and made knives here, but if so, why did he stamp the blades in English?
The German version would be "Morley und Söhne, Österreich". Still, the Austrian monarchy died in 1918, the first republic called Austria was born then. It did again 1938, when Austria became a part of the German Reich. While it is still possible that someone before 1918 used Austria as a blade stamp (a part of the country was called Austria), but normally they would have used the city of origin, so "Vienna" or "Linz" or something. Similar the "Solingen" stamped blades, without Germany.
Anyways, it is an interesting piece, and seems to be quite old. I guess it was made AFTER WWII, but I do not have any proof for that. So maybe you have a really old, odd gem there.
I wish the original poster was still on the forum; mine doesn't have a place of manufacture stamped, as far as I can tell.
Does anyone know what the two scale tools were? My copy is missing one of the tools; the other one appears to be an oil pick, perhaps?
Woz: Victorinox added tweezers and toothpicks to their knives starting in 1902, but I think their toothpicks have been plastic, however I've not seen a toothpick from 1902 to confirm. :/
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I´m not an expert, in fact I´m far from being an expert, but I have some doubts I want to share here (so maybe I can learn)
There are slots for toothpick and tweezers. When did the Swiss makers introduce them? Have there ever been toothpicks on a SAK that were NOT made from plastic?
Morley is not an Austrian name. Yes, there could have been be a man named Morley who migrated to Austria and made knives here, but if so, why did he stamp the blades in English?
The German version would be "Morley und Söhne, Österreich". Still, the Austrian monarchy died in 1918, the first republic called Austria was born then. It did again 1938, when Austria became a part of the German Reich. While it is still possible that someone before 1918 used Austria as a blade stamp (a part of the country was called Austria), but normally they would have used the city of origin, so "Vienna" or "Linz" or something. Similar the "Solingen" stamped blades, without Germany.
Anyways, it is an interesting piece, and seems to be quite old. I guess it was made AFTER WWII, but I do not have any proof for that. So maybe you have a really old, odd gem there.
W. H. Morley was not itself a knife manufacturer, but was an import brand used by A. Kastor & Bros of New York. :salute: (In other words, A. Kastor & Bros contracted with knifemakers in Germany and apparently Austria to make knives, had them stamped "W.H. Morley" and then imported the knives into the U.S. and possibly the U.K.) I have a plier knife stamped W.H. Morley that was built in the 1920's according to knife authority Bernard Levine. He mentions the company as being in existance as far back as 1900, but doesn't say when they ceased to exist. :-\
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Ah, now, that makes sense. Thank you for the information mate!
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My pleasure! :salute:
Oh by the way, a link to the W.H. Morley plier tool thread: http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,5058.msg84340.html#msg84340 (http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,5058.msg84340.html#msg84340) :)
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I wish the original poster was still on the forum; mine doesn't have a place of manufacture stamped, as far as I can tell.
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Hello,
This is a really old post, but I'm the original poster...
Was there a question that I could answer or place to look on the knife?