BOWIE Knife or not?

[Way-Barney]

Anyone help with this knife?

Is it a Bowie, to my eyes it looks of the Sandbar fight style,
When looking at Edwin Forrest's Bowie knife this has certain similarities, not least the sheath design. Is this common?
Also, when I look closely at the pin arrangement the rear pin is dropped below the center line as is Forrest's. Is this unusual?
could it possibly be by the same maker?



Any opinions please, or where would you recommend to go for information?

 

[tony281sc2]

Looks more like a spearpoint to me, but I what do I know

 

[eisman]

Kitchen knife.

 

[Vonderek]

It looks more like a carving knife than a butcher blade.

 

[Bill Siegle]

If located in a kitchen, nope. Carried in a sheath for self defense and utility? Sure!!! No one really knows for sure what a Bowie looks like. At the time James Bowie was alive, almost any large blade was referred to as a Bowie knife.

 

[Alberta Ed]

Looks more like a French chef's knife. That said, Jim Bowie likely used a big butcher knife in the infamous sandbar fight. Development of what is commonly though of as a Bowie knife today seems to have developed after that.

 

[tltt]

Not a Bowie, but a cook's knife. Adams (under the George Butler tradename) still catalogues versions in that style -

.

They were popular for a time as a camp knife in South America (particularly in Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina).

 

[Hammer67]

It's representative of common Spanish & French kitchen/butcher/camp knives found in many parts of the Americas at the time. Which is probably all the original Bowie knife really was.

Do you know anything more about that particular knife's age/history? Where it came from?

 

[Way-Barney]

It's representative of common Spanish & French kitchen/butcher/camp knives found in many parts of the Americas at the time. Which is probably all the original Bowie knife really was.

Do you know anything more about that particular knife's age/history? Where it came from?

I was informed from the seller it was 1850
Maker is Maleham & Yeomans sheffield, This particular knife I have dated to 1878
It was from a private collection with no history really.
also a bit strange is that the handle is tapered towards the lower edge same shape as the blade, flat ground

 

[tltt]

Saladero knife was the other name I was trying to remember for these. Saladero (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saladero) work was sort of like wild cowboy and butcher work. They'd hunt and wrangle wild cows. The hunting of the cows usually involved a C shaped spear that was used to cut the Achilles tendon of the cow while on horseback. Then if need be, the cow would be given the coup de grace with this type of knife.

Here's a fancy example - https://www.lot-art.com/auction-lot...arge-huntin/116-antique_snake-24.6.21-ryedale .

 

[Way-Barney]

If located in a kitchen, nope. Carried in a sheath for self defense and utility? Sure!!! No one really knows for sure what a Bowie looks like. At the time James Bowie was alive, almost any large blade was referred to as a Bowie knife.

Hi Bill,

would it have been common back then for the kitchen knives to be in a sheath?
the carry button looks quite ornate, I cant imagine quite how it was carried.

 

[tltt]

Hi Bill,

would it have been common back then for the kitchen knives to be in a sheath?
the carry button looks quite ornate, I cant imagine quite how it was carried.

Thick belt or shash, you just tuck it in -

.

.

.

The stud or tab acts as a stop. Very comfortable way to wear a big knife.

 

[Hammer67]

would it have been common back then for the kitchen knives to be in a sheath?

For average kitchen knives no, but as mentioned above, there were lots of carry knives that we basically no different in design, other than the sheath.

 

[Way-Barney]

Thick belt or shash, you just tuck it in -

.

.

.

The stud or tab acts as a stop. Very comfortable way to wear a big knife.

That back carry is so comfortable. you dont even know its there, sit down do anything you want, far better on horseback than swinging wildly about.

 

[Cobalt]

I was informed from the seller it was 1850
Maker is Maleham & Yeomans sheffield, This particular knife I have dated to 1878
It was from a private collection with no history really.
also a bit strange is that the handle is tapered towards the lower edge same shape as the blade, flat ground

looks like a typical Argentine Gaucho knife of the 1800's. Though not so fancy. I have owned several. But the style was basically a food prep knife adapted to multi uses.

 

[Way-Barney]

If I made one to this pattern would it be a Bowie knife?

 

[Way-Barney]

Saladero knife was the other name I was trying to remember for these. Saladero (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saladero) work was sort of like wild cowboy and butcher work. They'd hunt and wrangle wild cows. The hunting of the cows usually involved a C shaped spear that was used to cut the Achilles tendon of the cow while on horseback. Then if need be, the cow would be given the coup de grace with this type of knife.

Here's a fancy example - https://www.lot-art.com/auction-lot...arge-huntin/116-antique_snake-24.6.21-ryedale .

looks like a typical Argentine Gaucho knife of the 1800's. Though not so fancy. I have owned several. But the style was basically a food prep knife adapted to multi uses.

That is so interesting, Thank you both.

 

[Arathol]

That is so interesting, Thank you both.

If it were to be from Argentina, your knife would be called a cuchilla.

 

[Cobalt]

If it were to be from Argentina, your knife would be called a cuchilla.

Cuchillo is the correct general term for knife. But there are specific terms for different sized argentine gaucho knives. Cold steel makes the biggest one I've seen, the Facon. Cool looking knife.

 

[Arathol]

Cuchillo is the correct general term for knife. But there are specific terms for different sized argentine gaucho knives. Cold steel makes the biggest one I've seen, the Facon. Cool looking knife.

Cuchilla is the gaucho term for a large blade with a curved edge.....
Scroll down a bit.....

A Short Essay about Gaucho knives: Facón, Daga, Cuchilla and Puñal

Historic setting and classification of the types of traditional South American knives and daggers and parallels with the Bowie knife

www.vikingsword.com