A large Bow porcelain Knife, circa 1755
The large pistol grip haft is moulded with a design of rococo C-scrolls, painted in underglaze blue with panels of floral sprigs surrounded by hatched scrolls. The steel scimitar blade is attached with a scalloped silver ferrule.
Provenance: An English Private Collection.
Condition: No cracks or restoration. There is minor glaze loss to some of the moulded high points. The steel is good and sharp.
Dimensions: Length 28.3 cm (including blade)
Bow Porcelain: The Collection formed by Geoffrey Freeman, A. Gabszewicz & G. Freeman (Lund Humphries, 1982).
A Review of Bow and Worcester Knife and Fork Hafts, Tony Stevenson (ECC Transactions, vol. 13, no. 3, 1989).
Cutlery: From Gothic to Art Deco – The J. Hollander Collection, Jan van Trigt (Petraco-Pandora NV, 1999).
Ref. The V&A Museum, London, has a similar Bow fork (C.756-1924).