Knives and Scabbards
Knives and Scabbards
An image of the front cover of "Knives and Scabbards". The drawing is based on the original illustration CUTLER TULDNER, 1425, taken from 'Das Hausbuch der Mendelschen Zwölfbrüderstifung zu Nürnberg'.
Name/Title
Knives and ScabbardsEntry/Object ID
2025.1.3Tags
cutlery, history, archaeology, scissors, shears, londonDescription
A well illustrated and comprehensive book which reviews medieval finds from London of the mid-12th century to mid-15th century. It offers an illustrated catalogue of almost 500 items in total, including shears (n=54) and scissors (n=3) as well as knives and scabbards. The artefacts discussed are mainly from six waterfront excavations of domestic rubbish dumps. The book gives an overview of manufacturing, the materials used, decorative elements, and makers' marks. Reference is made to supporting documentary evidence, particularly from the Guilds (with the cutlers' guild being "perhaps the most powerful, and certainly the best recorded"). Evidence again covers manufacture and makers' marks, as well as rules and regulations covering aspects such as sale of items laid out by various guilds and/or the monarch. The construction and decoration of scabbards is addressed, as are the potential uses of the knives, shears, and scissors (eg, table knives, cleavers, sheep shears, fullers' shears, etc). The final chapter discusses the metallographic analysis carried out on a small number of the items. Testing revealed various things, including: a range of manufacturing methods; heat treatment; variable quality of the artefacts; generally good quality welding; and high phosphorous iron used in some tools. A detailed description of the results of testing for each of the items is offered; finally, the full illustrated catalogue of artefacts is presented.Cataloged By
studygroup@scissornet.orgCategory
Book, History