Netherlands/Dutch Knives?

[SpyderEdgeForever]

For anyone here who is either from there or knows, are there traditional knives associated with the Netherlands and Holland, that anyone knows of, either fixed or folding? I am interested in seeing different knives that are associated with areas of the world and in Europe.

[JD Spydo]

What really amazes me is the high percentage of members we have here on the Spyderco.com forum that are from the Netherlands. Other than the USA I can't think of any other country that is as well represented as our good Dutch Brothers are. And of every one of my Dutch Brothers I've had nothing but good to say about them. My good friend Spydutch is the guy who got me to take a serious look at Spyderedged blades.

But as far as Dutch made knives are concerned I don't remember ever owning one or even seeing one as far as that goes. It's also interesting that Spyderco has such a huge success with their Amsterdan show every year>> I would love to go to one someday if funds ever permit.

My favorite artist of all time was a Dutchman named Heironymus Bosch>> for you all who are into art check out some of his unbelievable paintings :cool: I have no doubt that they make some decent knives but I've never had one nor seen one here in the USA unfortunately.

[DutchBlades]

After giving this quite some thought, I have to admit that there aren't that many Dutch knives as far as I know...
One of the knives I know are traditional here (besides cheese knives :p) are "paardenmessen"; This literally translates to horseknives.
The Paardenmes is a classic Dutch kitchen knife. These knives were mostly made from boxwood, with intricately sculpted handles.

There are also some Dutch knife brands like Homeij, but they aren't necessarily "traditional".

Hope this is of any help!

[IG-88]

In the south of the Netherlands is a region called "Zeeland" (translation: Sealand). They have a traditional farmers knife called a "Paeremes" (local dialect for Horseknife). "Mes" means knife in dutch. "paere" is dialect for "paard" which translates to "horse"



Function

The farmer's pocket knife was a standard part of the traditional Zealand men's wear in the days when regional dress was common. The handle is decorated with carvings of a specific nature. Because of that beautifully decorated hilt one had a knife a bit for the show, but it was also to be used for anything and everything.

Components

A knife is composed of a blade, a sleeve and a knob. The blade is for sale, the cuff allows the jeweler to size and it raises you make yourself. A leather sheath, which is also for sale, making it a complete whole.

The blades that are sold now are much heavier than the former. The blade has on the top a pin which is inserted into the handle (angel). Between the angel and the cutting portion is a round or oval-shaped enlargement (goiter), which closes off the cuff. The old blades the crop is a circle of 15 mm or less, and on the side of the tang flat. Nowadays, the crop is an oval of 15 x 21 mm and on the side of the tang bulb. In order to get a good transition to the cuff a portion of the crop has to be buffed.

The cuff is the metal ring on the bottom of the handle. This makes the transition to the blade. Nowadays it is often chosen to use the cuff that comes with the blade. It is a cheap but ugly solution. These cuffs are large and of iron. That's not the right metal. They should be of silver or alpaca. You can have that silver with twisted edges or pearl edges.

The brown leather scabbards are commercially available in natural color, light brown so. You can treat the scabbard with leather paint, for example black. That gives a good contrast with the palm wood.

Wood Species

The wood for the handle is boxwood, which is the wood of the Buxus Sempervirens or boxwood. It now comes mainly from the Pyrenees. It is hard and durable. The fine grain and homogeneous structure make it suitable for detailed carving. The color is pale yellow, and changes in the course of the time hues that range from a reddish orange to dark brown. This change is due to the influence of light and addressing with the hands. Boxwood is sold by weight in stem pieces which may or may not halved lengthwise.

A method and tool

We do not know how anybody in the 19th century a lift. By studying old knobs and follow your own logic can tell you what to do and what tools to achieve the desired result. Part of the used tools made one former self. The later generations raises cutters do so. Small tools, basically made for another purpose, you grind so that they are suitable for special work. Practice shows that each develops its own approach and preferences for certain tools. In the text that now follows I describe my own method.

Model of the handle

You sawing a portion of the stem to the length of the handle. Model, length and cross-section of the handle is a matter of taste. Taste can be developed by taking good, authentic examples and base on your own design. The handle has an oval cross-section and tapers towards the cuff, which can be round or oval. In a cuff round it also raises some more around there.

A sharply raises from above may have a cross-section of 45 by 30 mm and from bottom just above the cuff about 20 mm. The length is between 13 and 13.5 cm. The measurements at a smaller copy than 35 at top 25 mm, about 18 mm below, with a length of 12 cm. Lengths are measured including cuff. The vast majority 19th century knobs have a size between the above extremes.

Does it raise a lion crowned instead of horses, than the diameter rounder can be and sometimes all the way around. The oval section geometrically pure often approximating the ellipse. In other words, a smooth shape, and not a rectangle whose corners are somewhat rounded.

You can use the piece of wood for the base form of the trite piece tribe split or sawn. I prefer to split, it gives instant visibility into any tassels and a bend in the wire. You now draw the oval shape on the top. Then you take always from top to bottom with a wood chisel down to the narrow bottom far. You drill a hole, for example, 8 mm for the sting of the blade, just below the level where it's cage. You stick the handle further to the sizes above and below are good. You can now put the blade even in the handle to see if shape and symmetry are good and some front and back of the handle is.

The next step is to make sure the cuff fits on the handle. You draw a line around at the bottom of the handle, at the level of the length of the cuff minus a few millimeters. You saw that line around a little in. I use a small kapzaagje that only about 0.2 mm thick. You cut wood off the cuff fits. The top edge of the cuff should not stabbing outside the wood of the handle. If you're the sting in the handle sticks you can see if the connection of blade and handle is good.

Classification of the handle

Horizontal lines indicate the format of the raises to. Unedited tapes of 1 to 2 mm usually separate the various decorations. The height of the horses with the platter on which they stand, and the decoration underneath determine the location of the cage. The height of the cage, the decorative edges and underneath the decorative edge above the cuff ensure informed that remains for the show that comes on the handle. This performance stands alone beneath the cage or even running down the front and sometimes also on the upper half of the front.

Like shape, size and location of the decorations are determined you can start sawing or cutting.

It basically does not really matter which you start. You can follow your own logic and preference, all part of a complete rest in further detail. The cage is a good start.

Cage with ball

You draw the cage on the handle. Many cages have five slots and six columns of which two are not separate, as they are part of the solid section of the handle. The number of columns may be odd, then there is one center back. All in all, it is sometimes precision work to come out well with the width of columns, slots and front. For example, the height of the incisions is 15 mm and width 1.5 mm. Practice shows that, while working on it soon be a fraction wider.

With the sharp point of a knife you cut in the outline of the incisions. With a flat chisel take wood away from the cut line. You will deepen with the tip of the knife the cut. With a chisel narrower than the slit, for example, 1 mm wide, deep you in the longitudinal direction of the slots. A few millimeters is enough.

It is useful in the resulting slots drilling holes, which facilitates further deepen. I do it manually with a small drill. The distance between the holes is as small as possible, the depth in such a way that wood for the ball is not damaged. In the two slots left and right (at the front of the handle) drill your way through. With the narrow chisel deep slots from this, so that a gap is formed through the handle it.

The other slots should be so deep that there is enough wood left over to form a ball. With a very flat chisel, for example, 1 cm wide and 1 mm thick, however, cross the walls of the slots away, in such a way that the pillars inwardly tapered. This creates the pillars behind a hollow space around a small stick. That skewer comes from above and below are stuck. By all slots around, you assume the top and bottom of the stick with the small wood chisel away until there is a ball.

With the same chisel make 'floor and ceiling' of the cage if possible. The smoother the inner walls of the cage are the better the ball can rattle.

The finish of the columns can be in various ways, including with motifs from the kerfsnedetechniek, triangles, squares and circles.

Borders

For the pillars of the cage as well as for decorative edges is that the consideration of a number of good examples helps to see what you need to do to get a certain effect. Often the decorations consist of a combination of cuts, gouge and burijnsteekjes. You use gouging with a U-shaped profile, which vary in width from more than 1 to 6 mm. The stitches on delivers burin with a V-shaped profile. With that last tool you work in long wood with the grain of the wood.

In relief

In the repertoire on a heft include farming tools, a plowing farmer or a farmer in a two-wheeled cart, one on a tree-like plant with leaves and flowers or a plant in a seemingly classical vase, a bird and so-called crooks.

All of you carry out in relief. That means that you deepens the background to the foreground, which is the idea, go. You draw the show and cut the contour lines. By this incision to take away wood with a chisel or knife. With chisels make the background about 2 mm deep and as smooth as possible. Now the scene is shown as a flat silhouette. You work the ideas further by drawing, cutting and stabbing. Within a depth of 2 mm, there is the illusion of plasticity.

The background you foresee of depressed dots with an awl which the pointed end has a round or triangular section. The foreground thereby distinguished from the background well.

Just Distribution

Part of the whole process is to fill the available spaces. Many handles shows how 'everything fits. " Size and location of the various parts of the decoration are designed so that not too much space remains empty. Sometimes a form which to be changed, such as floral motifs. Flowers, leaves and birds are added to enliven the whole and stuffing. This tendency to fill up is called horror vacui (fear of empty space), a term which include known in the art.

Ebony dots

The black dots are lifts a characteristic detail on a Zeeland. They are found in flowers, various other decorations and as the eyes of the horses.

At the place where a dot will drill a hole of a few millimeters deep. You make a little ebony stick around, so that the clamp fits in the hole, and you tap it with a hammer in there. You cut the stick to the surface. There is now a small black round visible. It is good to apply the dot after the drawing has been made. There is a risk of breakage if fitted immediately around all relief.

Topbekroning

For the plastic form of the topbekroning, for example, horses, other operations are required than for the relief. You draw on the upper surface of the front to back centerline. Left and right, draw a line indicating the width of each horse. You give to the top of the plateau where the horses are and you saw that line a little way in. Then you cross the wood next to the horse away.

You draw the silhouette of the horses, the dredging (food basket) and his support. Where possible you saw the outside of the silhouette, then you make the perimeter as pure as possible with knife and chisel.

On each of the four extreme corners of the space that is created between belly, plateau, front and rear legs can drill a hole. With a jigsaw get through from hole to hole saw an opening. The space at the front, between the horses and the dredging, do the same way.

Again you trek over the center a line that separates the horses. This line you saw in vertical, while maintaining the dredging at the front, from the back to just above the platter. The horses' bodies continue to be a saw cut away from each other.

The necks and heads get more space. Just above the handle of the dredging drill a horizontal hole to the inner handle, and you saw between the heads and necks vertically down, left and right of the center cut.

You now shapes the crowning of the handle with knife, chisel and gouge, but without detailing. The eight legs of the horses get loose by drilling holes from back to front and then further away dead wood. This work is similar to the work of the cage. The drills and chisels should be long enough to do between the hind legs by the work at the front legs.

The burin you tick the hair of the tail. The spine from tail to remind you bring a light socket with burin and gouge. The ears should not protrude too far, because that increases the chance of breakage. The mane and bangs give you shape through with gouge and knife lure to designate, followed by refinement with the burin. With lines that do not go along with the wire you use a knife instead of the burin. The eyes are ebony dots. You adorns the support of the dredging with a floral motif or vertical gouge stitches, possibly combined with burijnsteekjes. On the bagge you spend six to eight vertical grooves and groove to groove a row of horizontal incisions. You provides the lower and upper edge, and also the handle of oblique slices. All this gives the illusion of a woven basket. Good 19th-century examples show different solutions for working out in detail of the award.

The edge of the plateau on which the horses stand you can decorate with stitches gouge, cut lines or a similar torso as at the edges of the dredging.

Form of the horses

The design of the horse deserves attention. In the 19th century, the hand of the master recognizable include the design and detailing of the horses. You can follow a good 19th-century example.

In addition, the observation that the horse, which we now know as the Zeeland workhorse, not until the 20th century here has become common. Before that, there was a horse of a different type, it was built lighter. The former raises cutters each gave their own way to a horse, derived from the horse they saw then.

Linseed oil treatment and was

It has advantages to the handle with linseed oil and then with was to be treated. The color fills, the relief comes into its own and the wood is protected from moisture and dirt.

Linseed oil is a drying oil, after drying remains a hard substance over. You bring the linseed oil with a brush on the handle to. You can remove excess oil with a rag. If the handle is dry, you can treat all or was not colored. With an orange-brown atmosphere to obtain a handle not recent.

Fastening of the blade to the handle

The blade move fast to the hilt by means of sealing compounds. This is a resin-like product that is traded in chunks. With his hammer tapping off flakes. Which is done in a low tin can. You heat the can of sealant and also the sting of the blade. The kit melt and pour the liquid mass is now in the hole in the handle. You stick the hot sting in the filled hole. Now you have to keep the blade in the correct position when it cools. After the sealant has solidified, the whole is solidly mounted.





Translated from source: http://www.traditieszeeland.nl/traditie ... kmes-maken

[Jerome Blanes]

Hi there,

There are quite a few traditional knifes from over 4 centuries from The Netherlands.
Many will be described in the forthcoming Bekkesnijders book.
For more info see:
www.bekkesnijders.blogspot.com

From the website:
Forthcoming book about the history and culture of a typical Netherlands phenomenon: a traditional knife fighting art as practiced through the ages. The book includes a full training manual describing the techniques and strategies and several other related historical topics such as the knife industry of The Netherlands.
During the old days these fights were single fights or tournaments organized at the fairs or by the pubs and inns. People of all layers of society participated but it was most popular with the common man. There was a code of honour and a set of rules. Victory came when blood was drawn from the head, preferably by cutting the other fighter's face. Death was a rare outcome. But as arguments and other mishaps were often fought out in a similar fashion, with or without rules, death did occur. Mostly followed by banishment, the death penalty or a lengthy prison sentence for the survivor. Throughout the centuries local regents have forbidden 'Bekkesnijden' (Maul Cutting) many times over but were never really able to enforced their laws. During the 19th century one-on-one Bekkesnijden became an illegal underground art. The name Bekkesnijden then slowly became a word associated with any incident with which knifes, palm-blades or sharpened coins were used to cut one's face. The true art of Bekkesnijden is still practiced today with live blades (in the form of illegal prize-fights), blunt blades or with specially designed marker-blades. Even though training or competing with blunt blades and marker-blades is not illegal, the art has still remained an underground phenomenon. There are however plans to make it a respectable competitive sport.

The book is expected to be published in 2016.
The book has been promoted at the DKE Knife show in April 2015 in Tiel in The Netherlands.

[Doc Dan]

What a fascinating thread! Thanks.