Medieval Iron Knife with Bronze Pommel

15TH-16TH CENTURY A.D.

6 3/4 in. (35 grams, 17 cm).

Comprising a single cutting edge and scale tang; bifacial pommel engraved with a female figure to one face and an enigmatic design to the other.

Provenance

Acquired 1960s-1990s.
Late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister.

Published

Exhibited at the Harwich Museum, Harwich, Essex, UK, 19th June-9th September 2024; accompanied by a copy of a photograph of the artefact on display.

Literature

Cf. Marquardt, K., Eight Centuries of European Knives, Forks and Spoons: an Art Collection, Europe, 1997, pp.28-32, for similar.

Footnotes

There were four essential ways to carry the small knifes in late Middle Ages: a) with the scabbard tucked diagonally behind belt, without suspension loop; b) without scabbard, simply thrust through the purse of the belt; c) with the scabbard tied horizontally at waist with suspension holes in the widened handle flap; d) suspended vertically from thong looped over the belt, in the scabbard.

CONDITION

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LOT 1899