Non-American Bowie-type knives

Hi again everybody,
Recently I was looking over some antique listings, and I found a very interesting example listed as a "German Bowie knife," marked "A Feist & Co., Solingen." It's basically a medium-sized dagger very much in the style of Sheffield. Interestingly, however, the Anglo-American influence goes beyond the basic outline of the piece, as the blade is etched with a phrase found on many Sheffield blades made in the 1800s for the American market -- "The Patriots Self Defender" -- which suggests it was made in the same period and was intended for exportation to the US. But what's most interesting in my opinion is that the ricasso has the phrase "English steel" stamped on it, which I've never seen before (though remember seeing "India steel" on some English knives from the period). Have you by any chance seen this on a knife before, Jack Black Jack Black ? Below are some pics:

kSctQ7e.jpg

CJeLIIN.jpg

M68wqMe.jpg
 
Trubetzkoy said:
Hi again everybody,
Recently I was looking over some antique listings, and I found a very interesting example listed as a "German Bowie knife," marked "A Feist & Co., Solingen." It's basically a medium-sized dagger very much in the style of Sheffield. Interestingly, however, the Anglo-American influence goes beyond the basic outline of the piece, as the blade is etched with a phrase found on many Sheffield blades made in the 1800s for the American market -- "The Patriots Self Defender" -- which suggests it was made in the same period and was intended for exportation to the US. But what's most interesting in my opinion is that the ricasso has the phrase "English steel" stamped on it, which I've never seen before (though remember seeing "India steel" on some English knives from the period). Have you by any chance seen this on a knife before, Jack Black Jack Black ? Below are some pics:

kSctQ7e.jpg

CJeLIIN.jpg

M68wqMe.jpg
Click to expand...
I have seen the 'English Steel' mark before :) Handsome knife :thumbsup:
 
Jack Black said:
I have seen the 'English Steel' mark before :) Handsome knife :thumbsup:
Click to expand...
Just found another very similar German example with the "English Steel" on it, also very Sheffieldesque. Interesting division of labor if the blades were made in England and then hilted in Germany. I'd imagine the etching took place in England too, given that they were known for that...
 
Trubetzkoy said:
Just found another very similar German example with the "English Steel" on it, also very Sheffieldesque. Interesting division of labor if the blades were made in England and then hilted in Germany. I'd imagine the etching took place in England too, given that they were known for that...
Click to expand...
I think the 'English Steel' mark simply denotes that the steel, from which the blade was made, was made in England. You find similar marks on US cutlery. However, it's possible that the blades, or even complete knives, were imported.
 
Speaking of European mysteries, here's another interesting knife from my modest collection:

ykFYMvo.jpg


I don't know much about it as it has no marks, but I'm pretty confident it was made either in England or in India in the 1800s. I lean more towards India, since it has several features that, together, were characteristic of 19th-century Anglo-Indian Bowies: the roundish clip point with a wide and smooth false edge, the iron crossguard with a round section, the hidden-tang stag handle, and the flat pommel (in this connection, see for example this article by David Johnstone, with its second part, and this video by Matt Easton at Scholagladiatoria). What's pretty unique about this particular piece is the checkered section of the antler, a feature I haven't seen in other examples.

Edit: Links fixed.
 
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Hi all,
Figured it was time to keep this thread going with a knife from the place that produced most of the Bowies in circulation in the 19th century:

WNROqWr.jpg


This is another piece I own about which I don't have much information, since there's no maker's mark. However, it seems safe to assume that it's a Sheffield example, based on the scabbard style and construction (cardboard wrapped with thin leather with nickel silver fittings and golden inlays) and the fact that I got it from the UK. This one has a pretty interesting turned and carved handle, seemingly made of rosewood. The scabbard is missing its chape.

Feel free to share more non-American Bowies, antique or otherwise!
 
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Ron Lawson said:
A couple I'm currently researching.
https://imgur.com/9bhPhmQ
https://imgur.com/Z4dKbui
Click to expand...

The second one looks very interesting! What do you know about that one and the first? The first one looks to me like it could've been made in the US in the early 1800s, assuming it's legit. It certainly doesn't look like a Sheffield piece, at least.

On the other hand, the third one looks to be a mid- to late-19th century French piece, while the fourth one looks English based on the handle, though it's hard to say given the resolution (it could've been put together in recent time using a spare blade and a cutlery handle).
 
Another European piece from my modest collection, most likely made in Spain in the 1800s:

tOO4AfK.jpg

ZMCUUbt.jpg

gqfhfL6.jpg

QzdopcJ.jpg


I've never really seen anything like it as far as hilts are concerned, but the blade has prototypically Spanish lines. Never seen this particular maker's mark -- which seems to represent a fish -- either.
 
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Trubetzkoy said:
Beautiful lines! Is this a knife you own? If so, is the false edge ground on both sides of the blade, or is it like the early Green River bowies?
Click to expand...

Thanks, and yes it's mine. The false edge is ground the same on both sides.
Henckels offered quite a few different Bowie and Bowie-Hunter models from the 1890s up through the 1930s.
 
herder said:
Thanks, and yes it's mine. The false edge is ground the same on both sides.
Henckels offered quite a few different Bowie and Bowie-Hunter models from the 1890s up through the 1930s.
Click to expand...
I do remember seeing a couple other bowie hunters by them before. Do you know if they ever made fancier bowies à la Sheffield? Somehow earlier German bowie-type knives really speak to me, perhaps because everybody else is so into Sheffield bowies (which I do love too).
 
Thanks .577NE, and great old Boker meako. That Henry Boker Remscheid Pelican stamp is not a common mark to find in the United States.

Trubetzkoy, Henckels made some of the very best quality knives, but very few "fancy" models including their Bowie knives. They did offer some fancy hunting swords.
While the Germans made jagdmesser (hunting knives) and hirschfanger (hunting swords) well back in time, most of the better known companies like Henckels and Boker didn't produce American styled Bowie knives until the late 1800s.
A few German cutlery companies such as F. Herder produced some very fancy hunting knives and daggers for the South American market in during the late 1800s to early 1900s.
There are a few known German Bowie knives from the mid-1800s, but certainly not many.

Nice job on making the sheath tip for the IXL.
 
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