G. Butler & co - Holborn co Holborn Circus Horseshoe Knife

[bjc835]

I was given this knife form my uncle who told me it was a horseshoe knife. I had never heard of one before. To me it looks like it has been over sharpened and shaped that way, but I don't know for sure. The tip is cureled over and there is a notch that the curl sits in when it is folded. The notch itself almost looks "after market" but again I am not sure.

I did a bit of recearch on the G. Butler brand and it was G.Butler from i think the mid 1800s to 1950s, but i can't find anything tied with Holborn co or Holborn Circus.

So on the side of the knife are the Holborn marks, and at the blade hinge is the G. Butler & co mark with a key above the name.

Any value or historical info would be much help...

I can't seem to get the pictures to link from the sites i have them at, but I posted them on ebay forum, where no one seems to know anything about it.
http://community.ebay.com/t5/Antiques/G ... 245#M97827

[terryl308]

bj, I have used a knife similar to the one you posted, it is a knife used for cleaning out the "frog" of the horses hoof, (getting the dirt, rocks , and etc out of the bottom of the hoof before shoeing or trimming.) They were pretty common in my part of the country back when horses were used daily. I have seen them with cast iron handles and wooden handles, can't comment on the makers stamps though. They show up at farmers and ranchers auctions fairly frequently. Still available from horse shoers supply. Terry

[orvet]

I have not seen the folders but I have a couple of the fixed blade farrier's knives. Growing up on a ranch and spending a lot of time every summer in the saddle I am familiar with the knife and their use.

Here is a pic of one of mine:

[bjc835]

Thanks for your replies, they were informative. I loved horses back when i was a child. I still do actually, but do not know anyone with them. Back when i was a kid though I was living on a Navajo Indian reservation and we did a lot with horses, but in a different manner. We did not shoe them (which maybe why i never seen these knives. Although they might have been around and my child brain never picked up on them) or saddle them very often. I loved saddle riding a lot more though. Much more comfortable than just a blanket.