Incredibly Rare Knife on eBay - Holley Charter Oak(Possibly)

[TwoFlowersLuggage]

Yes, I did read the thread. I understand what "Charter Oak" means, and I also understand that extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Without the proper provenance, I would not pay an extraordinary price for any collectible.

[kootenay joe]

This ebay seller has me blocked from many years ago. He did not like a question i asked about a knife he had listed. It was a straight forward question, not accusatory and one that other sellers would have simply answered. However he does have very collectible knives listed at all times with prices that are high.
I think this knife is legit and to the right collector perhaps worth close to asking.
kj

As a side note: does anyone know if Dave, dcgm4 who started this thread is still 'with us' ? He has not posted in a long time.

[galvanic1882]

Yep your correct Dan I did have the knife up for sale but it never sold so it went back to the owner. The guy selling it now is selling knives for the same collector that has since passed away.

[LongBlade]

This ebay seller has me blocked from many years ago. He did not like a question i asked about a knife he had listed. It was a straight forward question, not accusatory and one that other sellers would have simply answered. However he does have very collectible knives listed at all times with prices that are high.
I think this knife is legit and to the right collector perhaps worth close to asking.
kj

As a side note: does anyone know if Dave, dcgm4 who started this thread is still 'with us' ? He has not posted in a long time.

KJ - That seller is abit bizarre and has been discussed here before... he is not a pleasant seller to deal with and despite his "Make An Offer" my experience is any offer below his Buy it Now price infuriates him and he comes back with "don't low ball me" - nice knives but he is a PIA... He also posts minimal photos and gets pissy when you ask for other photos ... (BTW - I wish I knew what happened to Dave - I corresponded with him offline for a few years - he was a young guy so hoping he is ok - he certainly was an avid collector and nice guy...

Yes, I did read the thread. I understand what "Charter Oak" means, and I also understand that extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Without the proper provenance, I would not pay an extraordinary price for any collectible.

TFL - Provenance for the Charter Oak knife - ... would be nice but when Holley made these in the mid 1800s they were not thinking some collector would ever be buying these 150 years later - The Charter Oak was white oak and many items were made from it in the 1800s including many congressional seats and the governor's chair here in CT - the tree was in Hartford, capital of CT. Holley supposedly received some of the wood. The only way this could be definitely proven is scientific analysis which would not be possible... Now given that if an old Holley catalog exists with this knife or a similar one than some evidence may support it... in the end if you read the thread than some very knowledgable and experienced collectors think the knife is for real and the knife has some historic significance - its the price that is under question...

[TwoFlowersLuggage]

I get it - I really do - my point is that if you have an incredibly rare item that cannot be proven to be authentic, then you should not expect to receive a high price. That's simply the way it works in the high-end collectible markets. Whether or not it is *possible* to prove authenticity isn't relevant. And provenance doesn't always have to be an original signed letter from the maker to the current owner - provenance can come in all shades from white to black. The opinion of experts certainly counts. The opinion of experts that have actually examined the knife in hand (and don't have a dog in this hunt) would count for more than looking at a couple of small blurry pictures on the internet.

[LongBlade]

I agree with you TFL that provenance can come in many forms... According to Stewart & Ritchie each of those knives were made and sold with a statement stating provenance that the handles were from the Charter Oak - the knives are very rare and not many comparables are available nor have I ever seen the statement from Holley - I am not a player to buy this knife but if I was I would like to see that provenance and certainly this knife would get high end money if that written statement was available - may even have sold already if that was available... Seller does have lousy photos but guess he cares very little (most of his knives only have 2 or 3 photos) - wonder what he would reply if he was asked for provenance ..

[galvanic1882]

I agree with you TFL that provenance can come in many forms... According to Stewart & Ritchie each of those knives were made and sold with a statement stating provenance that the handles were from the Charter Oak - the knives are very rare and not many comparables are available nor have I ever seen the statement from Holley - I am not a player to buy this knife but if I was I would like to see that provenance and certainly this knife would get high end money if that written statement was available - may even have sold already if that was available... Seller does have lousy photos but guess he cares very little (most of his knives only have 2 or 3 photos) - wonder what he would reply if he was asked for provenance ..

When I had the knife from the owner for sale there was no
provenance to go with the knife, just an FYI

[LongBlade]

Thanks Mike for the reminder - I just reread your post a few pages ago and you noted there was not the certificate nor the purse... Dimitri's post noted he had seen the OP knife (on page 1 of this thread), certificate and purse and he felt the knife was legit... This knife as you noted appears legit and no doubt saw some use but for me I would like to see the additional certificate and purse in the "deal" if theoretically I was interested ...