Razors, a unique form of beauty from days gone by!  Those are very nice but the pearl is a spectacular example of how these could be aa beautiful as they were useful

I LOVE THE PEARLS THEY ARE FOR THE MOST PART ,ART

Malcom, 

Thanks for the info on Nicholson.  He is a little hard to find info on

Greetings from snowy England - this global warming thing is beginning to worry me a bit. We have added Sheffield scissors from one of the last Sheffield handmade scissor makers to a new web site http://www.euro-traveller.com Like a lot of the current Sheffield cutlery makers I am not sure how long supplies will last but we are listing a bit at a time what we have. 

Smiling-knife

I am looking for some help on this knife, all if find on the net is a referral to 1800's sheffield and there is no picture...It is race bro's celebrate cutlery , I think it has iron bolsters  3 blade pearl...any history or dating would be greatly appreciated

Thanks in advance

Sue

Hi Sue. Welcome to the group. That's a nice old knife. Is it stamped Sheffield? It looks like a German knife from the late 1800s - early 1900s to me with the combination of mop scales and long bolsters. I found one other online that was listed as German. Will see if I can find more information for you.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=336320819

It also appear to me that your knife has nickel silver bolsters with steel pins which is also typical of German knives at the time. Over time, the pins become a slightly different colour to the bolsters.

Blade's Guide list Race Bros as a import brand made in Germany circa 1880s. Goin's Encyclopedia suggests a time frame circa 1875-1900. A nice older knife for sure.

If anybody could find a copy of this book I would be grateful -

REGISTER OF TRADEMARKS OF THE CUTLERS’ COMPANY, SHEFFIELD. 1953 EDITION

The knife in question is German. For interest I have posted an Asprey knife - the Royal jewellers. A chance find as the auctioneer could not read the marks.

Double bladed folding knife. Charles Asprey and George Asprey now Asprey & Co., London hallmark date letter g for 1902. Silver sides, steel blades. Closed size three inches. http://www.sheffield-gb.com

Not a Sheffield knife but worth looking at.

I have not seen a copy for sale for a very long time.You May ask members in the forum at 

britishblades.com

The Asprey & Co knife is very nice. Do you think that the knife parts were made in Sheffield and assembled for Asprey... the retailer or did Asprey make the knife?

Asprey were experts with silver so they would done the silver work themselves. The knife parts probably were Sheffield. Many more quality antique knives are coming on the market at present and I will post pictures next week. Supplies of new quality folding knives from Sheffield are getting much more difficult as the best craftsmen age. Several I deal with are nearly 80 now. regards malcolm http://www.sheffield-gb.com

Below is a Sheffield made fishing knife. Made by George Butler & Co. The blades carry his 'Key' mark. Pre 1900. http://www.sheffield.gb.com

Below is a Sportsmans knife made by George Butler & Co  of Sheffield. A rugged knife and the blades both the key mark and the art mark. They made various adaptions of this knife. This is probably either the horseman's knife or the sportsmans knife. http://www.sheffield-gb.com  Pre 1900

For those of you interested the book Sheffield Exhibition knives is being sold off cheaply on Amazon - its' a 90 dollar book but I picked up my copy for 5 dollars. Also going for a song is Pocket Fruit knives by Simon Moore regards Malcolm http://www.sheffield-gb.com  Both books are excellent.

this knife is absolutely amazing! 

Finding quality items is just so difficult. I could walk round all the London flea markets and antique markets and find nothing. That item is sold. Reg Cooper is making me a couple of Bowie knifes but he is in his 80's now and that source of handmade knifes from a chap who has been in the trade for very many years. If many of these Sheffield knives I always think that my last order will truly be my last. Trevor Ablett is making me a quantity of folding knives made with camel bone handles which is a bit exotic by Sheffield standards. regards Malcolm http://www.sheffield-gb.com 

This is a Middleton Brothers of Sheffield hunting knife. It's a substantial piece with a blade of 10 inches and an overall length of 15 inches

Sorry about that but the hunting knife is J. E. Middleton & Sons, Rockingham Street, Sheffield - another fine knife maker who are no longer around.

What you should look out for are Sheffield made quill cutters. Not the simple ones with a blade simply attached to a handle but items with the knives on slides with bone handles. They are very difficult to find and command high prices.

Greetings. I have a couple of new handle types made by Trevor Ablett. A goat horn handle which is very hard and translucent and gives the appearance not unlike quartz. The other is camel bone and again is very hard with a more rugged appearance than stag. Both by Trevor Ablett. http://www.sheffield-gb.com I also have some very big Bowie knives made by Reg Cooper who is now in his 80's but still turning out a few knives. He has spent a lifetime in the trade in Sheffield. Things are a bit slow at the moment as I am just recovering a bout of gout. 

It only put up one picture so here is the camel. I am not sure how many camel's there are in Sheffield maybe a few in the zoo perhaps.

This is a bowie knife made by Reg Cooper of Sheffield. Reg has been in the trade all his life and is in his 80's now. He still makes a few knives. This has a buffalo handle and is 16 inches long.

This shows the hand file work on the Reg Cooper Bowie.

Following a lengthy struggle to obtain historic wood for knife scales the first of the knives has appeared. The wood for the knife comes from the teak decking originally used by the Royal Yacht Britannia. The ship was decommissioned from the Royal Navy several years ago and the surplus teak planking which had been carefully stored for over 50 years was disposed of and I managed to obtain a small quantity. We have produced a spearpoint with polished blade and a lambsfoot. Following this up will be knife scales from an old Cornish Yew Tree. The wood has been seasoned for over ten years and was the traditional wood used by the bowmen of England. The knives are on http://www.sheffield-gb.com

Coming soon hopefully before Christmas are a number of Sheffield made bowie knives. Made by Reg Cooper who is now in his 80's after a lifetime in the trade. These will have 5 inch blades and will be considerably cheaper than his larger Bowies. htttp://www.sheffield-gb.com Trevor Ablett is getting back into production after his accident.

Scrade IXL Sheffield

IXL Barlow

Hi Ken, Welcome to the group and thanks for posting your knives. That's a nice example of a Schrade Wostenholm stockman. They were only made for a few years in the early 1980s. Your knife looks like it is stamped with a 0 for 1980. I hope this is of interest.

Thanks for the info, very interesting.

Greetings and Happy New Year to every body. Below is an advertising knife for the Sheffield Steel works, It is not made in Sheffield and is probably French but it is well worth looking at as part of Sheffield history. It was sold as soon as I put it on the web site. Trevor Ablett is back in production following his broken wrist and Reg. Cooper is still after a lifetime in the trade turning out a few Bowie knifes. regards http://www.sheffield-gb.com  Malcolm

This is the other side of the knife.

I bought very old antique Sheffield Fruit Knife in 1901 circa from UK in about two months ago. And makers initials W.N for William Neale. Very fine English Hallmarked sterling silver & mother of pearl fruit knife. 

click this... Sheffield Fruit Knife in 1901 Circa

Is there a good online source for Sheffield tang stamps?

I recently acquired this Richards Sheffield fish knife.

This is my first knife and wouldn't you know its a Shefield. A Humphreys Radient from the late 1800's

Here is a small pearl ladies knife (2 /14" closed, 3 1/2 open) button hook tip broken and a small tight crack in the pearl on the back side. It is marked Wilson Bros. Sheffield on the master blade. Don't know the age but figured older.

Here is another Sheffield marked John Fisher, Sheffield on master and secondary on backside. Not sure if it is ivory or bone handled? It is 3" closed.

There were a great many manufactures in Sheffield.  Ever wonder what happened to the equipment?  I would love to see new life in cutlers there as we have seen here 

As Britain de-industrialised huge quantities of machinery were shipped overseas mainly to Africa. A lot of simple manufacturing operations can no longer be carried out in the UK because the machinery and the individuals are no longer around. I remember the old cutting and creasing platens in the printing industry which could be used to knock out a few boxes in a couple of hours now you would be hard put to find a box maker able to handle anything under a couple of thousand boxes.

In my quest to buy up ancient wood I am currently trying to find a shaving brush maker able to make the brushes from some ancient teak I have and it's just impossible. I finally tracked down perhaps the last maker of honing stones left in the UK but it is very difficult.

If I was younger I could quite easily make a living as a short run box maker with an old Victorian platen. I remember selling one for a couple of hundred pounds and off it went to Nigeria. Sheffield knife making is by and large in it's death throes.

This year is a year of anniversaries in the UK. The Magna Carta, the Battle of Waterloo and Agincourt all have important anniversaries this year. This is our first Commemerative knife for Agincourt where the English and Welsh longbow men destroyed the French army. The knife has yew scales the traditional wood for longbows.

Bob, a little info on your John Fisher-Sheffield- The dates on this one would be circa 1850-1875 per Goin's- My guess would be ivory-- Beautiful very old knife!!

M.

The knives you have produced and sell are such  timeless patterns and I know first hand they are great quality.  I would hope there are some apprentices in the shops but with the current atmosphere on knives in the UK I am doubtful.  It is a terrible shame that hobbyist cannot enjoy it the same as they do here even.  I encourage anyone looking for sheffield knives to check ot the last few makers and own one before it is just too late

Bob, a little info on your Wilson Bros.- Sheffield--- Next to no info out there on this company--However, I did come across this little snippet--From the United States Congressional Public Records circa 1890--This was in regard to increasing tariffs or duties on imported knives--To paraphrase, the person testifying named 3 companies that were sold in the USA based on their quality and reputation alone, and were not in direct competition with American companies based on this--Most of the figures came from 1877- The 3 companies-Joseph Rodgers & Sons, George Wolstenholm & Sons, and Wilson Bros.--- I would say Wilson Bros. was in pretty good company as to quality & esteem. As they were already esteemed in 1887, that will give you a general idea as to vintage-BTW, I am not so sure that is a button hook knife---I think it is a gentleman's ( or gentle ladies) horseman's knife with a hoof pick blade-- Here is a pic of a Wilson Bros. Button hook knife--Notice how the blade curves back up before the hook part--

A little more on your Wilson- Every example I can find of a  button hook blade shows that same curve before the bend- which your's does not have-https://www.google.com/search?q=antique+button+hook+knife&rlz=1... If you google search antique horsemen's knives, you will find many with the same blade profile as yours--, To me, it looks like your hoof blade is complete unless you have evidence otherwise---A little Zap a Gap to fix the handle crack and you have a  outstanding example of a 100-150 year old knife !!

John, I know you are correct  on the hook end, I pondered on it because it doesn't start with the reverse bend to the hook. I was not sure what it was though, never seen that small a hoof pick on that small a knife. I am really astounded at all the info you found on this one, I found only the name in a knife book I had but other info indeed scarce. Thanks to the highest degree on the info for the Wilson.

Bob, I have to go knife hunting with you someday !!- Seriously?? You only paid $2 apiece for two Sheffield knives that are 100-150 years  old??--- Pardon my French, but Holy Crap, Batman !!  WOW !!

Interesting knives Bob. I don't have anything on the makers so far.  I found a similar knife to your mother pearl which is advertised has having a button hook. Typically the hooks have the shape shown in John's photo. This one is straight into the curve. I think the size and shape make it unlikely to be a hoof pick. I'll see if I can find further information this evening.

http://www.antiquesnavigator.com/d-964407/antique-clark-bros-pearl-...

Maybe they were a his and hers set.  Hers with a button hook and his with a hoof cleaner?