At Flea market this morning & think I got a butter or cheese knife. (Update: Caviar Knife)

PocketKnifeJimmy

PocketKnifeJimmy

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Aug 4, 2013
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So, there I was perusing the Flea Market this morning, and I was just about aiming to leave after finding no Picasso or Van Gogh, and then, in a box full of nick nacky items, I saw this... Well, I don't know what it is. Maybe a cheese knife, butter knife, or a letter opener. Maybe none of those guesses are right. But, I thought it would look nifty placed somewhere amongst my collection of "interesting objects".
The blade is made of mother of pearl, the bolster made of nickel silver, and the handle made of sterling silver. Age?... I have no clue, but likely at least vintage, and maybe even antique.
In any case, it was just 5 bucks, so I thought it was awfully cool for that price 😅

I removed the tarnish, since I don't care for the look of tarnished sterling silver.

Before and after pics...20220327_103915_(1).jpg20220327_115537_(1).jpg
 
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drawkcaB said:
Very interesting find!

What is the "blade" length?

Just a guess: I've read that nacre was used for serving caviar, to avoid metallic flavors.
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The MOP blade is about 2 1/2" long.

As for your input on what it might be... Hmmm, maybe that's it! 👍
 
I had to look up nacre (mother of pearl).

That is interesting. Looks like you found a good spot for it.
 
drawkcaB said:
to avoid metallic flavors
Click to expand...
Sounds fishy !

Seen MOP handles before , of course , but not blades .

Gotta wonder about toughness and edge retentions etc ...well maybe not for fish egg goop . ;)
 
Thanks... And, the gentleman above was correct, it is an antique caviar knife!

Good call! 👍👍

Anyhow, the prices for similar condition specimens I found online, range from about $65 to about $190.
So, my having paid only $5 for mine, I think I did good! 😅
 
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I do wonder if the Caviar knife's blade being shaped like a Scimitar is just a style thing, or if it has a purpose when using it for Caviar.
I am not a seafood person at all, and no way would I indulge in eating fish eggs, so I would personally not have a clue on how the Caviar eating ritual is performed, or what all may be entailed.

My only other knife with a Scimitar shaped blade is my KaBar Swabbie 😅

20211007-164640-1.jpg
 
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I first guessed it was either a butter knife or a letter opener.
But, the thing is, it's quite small for a butter knife or letter opener.

Then, while texting my daughter that lives in London, I showed her a picture of it and she guessed it may be a cheese knife.

I come in here, show a picture of it, and BAM!... One of you guys guesses it lickity split 👍😁👍
 
It took me until post #13 before realizing the blade was made from mother of pearl... I had no clue that was even possible.

Great find and thank you for sharing!
 
Every caviar purist use exclusively 24 carats gold spoons only

I personally prefer my fingers, much cheaper and no metalic odors yet :^D

BTW - very nice knife you found
 
Okay, glad you figured out what it was but now I want to know about the rest of that stuff pictured. The pocket knives I got, the magnifying glasses okay, but what about those ornate button hook looking things or the things that look like shoe spoons?
 
Triton said:
Okay, glad you figured out what it was but now I want to know about the rest of that stuff pictured. The pocket knives I got, the magnifying glasses okay, but what about those ornate button hook looking things or the things that look like shoe spoons?
Click to expand...

You already got it... Late Victorian to early Edwardian era shoe horns and button hooks 👍
 
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