Knife

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This knife with silver handle and steel blade was made by Edinburgh silversmiths W. & P. Cunningham, in 1815-6. The knife is known as a pistol-grip knife from the style of the handle.

The knife has a slightly curved blade with a rounded end. There is a crest on the upper surface of the handle depicting a lady placed underneath a baron's coronet, holding a tower in her left hand and a palm-branch in her right hand.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, making cutlery, or flatware, was the mainstay of many Scottish goldsmiths. As eating habits became more sophisticated cutlery items were produced in greater numbers and had an increasingly diverse range of patterns.

Record details

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• Online ID: 000-100-001-066-C
• Image Rights Holder: National Museums Scotland
• Project: National Museums Scotland
  Project description   View all records in project
• Ref: National Museums Scotland  H.MEQ 1135
• Date: 1815-6
  
• Material: Silver handle, steel blade. Inscription: W& / PC [rubbed]; on upper surface: a demi-lady holding in the dexter hand a tower and in the sinister hand a palm branch, under a baron's coronet [crest]
  
• Dimensions: 285 mm L
  
• What:
• Subject: Gold and silver (NMAS Classification)
  
• Who: W. and P. Cunningham, Edinburgh (Silversmith)
  
• Where: Scotland, Midlothian, Edinburgh
  
• Event:
• Description: Knife with a steel blade and a rectangular silver handle with a shell butt, by W. and P. Cunningham, Edinburgh, engraved with a crest showing a demi-lady holding a tower and a palm branch
  
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