THIS is a KNIFE
by Jon Burch Photography
Title
THIS is a KNIFE
Artist
Jon Burch Photography
Medium
Photograph - Digital Capture
Description
"That's not a knife, THIS is a knife..." said the gentleman from Australia to the mugger. There was also a Texan who appreciated a good knife, a man by the name of Jim.
The Bowie knife is a pattern of fixed-blade fighting knife first popularized by James Bowie in the early 19th Century. Since the first incarnation was created by James Black, the Bowie knife has come to incorporate several recognizable and characteristic design features, although its common use refers to any large sheath knife with a cross guard and a clip point.
The "Bowie knife" first became famous due to Bowie's use of a large knife at a duel known as the Sandbar Fight. The knife pattern is still popular with collectors; in addition to various knife manufacturing companies there are hundreds of custom knife makers producing Bowies and variations.
The historical Bowie knife was not a single design, but was a series of knives improved several times by Jim Bowie over the years. The earliest such knife, made by Jesse Clift resembled Spanish hunting knives of the day, and differed little from a common butcher knife. The blade, as later described by Rezin Bowie, was 9.5 inches long, 0.25 inch thick and 1.5 inches wide. It was straight-backed blade similar to a large butcher knife without a clip point or hand guard, with a simple riveted wood scale. The first known Bowie knife showed a strong Mediterranean influence, particularly the shape of the traditional Spanish folding knife, often carried by immigrants to Mexico and other territories of the Old Southwest.
This knife was made by Colt and manufactured by United Cutlery.
Image copyright 2014 Jon Burch Photography
Uploaded
September 10th, 2014
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