Knife Notes – Chris Hyde

For those with a penchant for knives and an appreciation for art the Deutsches Klingenmuseum is a must see when in Germany.

The museum chronicles the history of knives and swords from the Bronze age until the current times; and the variety and quality of the collection are stunning.

One of the highlights of the museum are the “little masterpieces” in ivory. The image above is a good example. There are hundreds these figural examples to be seen.

You can see a 3 minute virtual tour of the museum by clicking HERE.

Chris Hyde

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One of the most popular knives among collectors today are the folding hunters. You can find these knives made in various countries, but predominantly you see them made in Germany, England and Italy.

I ran across this photo from a catalog of the Gottlieb Hammesfahr company. There is some question as to how long they have been in business, but references have been made to them being established in the late 17th century. They are mostly known for the weapons they made during WWII although they have produced a wide variety of cutlery types (like the folding hunters shown).

Click here for larger image

They had several different logos over the years. The Pyramide logo that these blades sport was established in 1889.

The company was absorbed by Wilkens Bremer Silberwaren in 1971 which is still in business today.

Photos courtesy of The Rheinisches Industriemuseum. History references are Goins Encyclopedia of Cutlery markings and Anthony Carters The Sword and Knife Makers of Germany 1850-200.

As an aside there is a reason that there is more known about German knife and sword from A-L. Anthony had planned two volumes but died before he could publish M-Z. I believe that volume A-L is out of print. I was fortunate enough to get one from the eteemed Henning Ritter from Hubertus.

Thanks for looking!

Chris Hyde

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