All About Pocket Knives

I just picked up this very old Jonathan Crookes knife, Sheffield England, and thought I would share it with you all here in the Knife Lore section of the forum. This is a nice sized knife, measuring in at 4" closed...
I don't know much at all about the maker except what I've been able to find from researching here on the site, from what I can tell the Johathan Crookes stamping with the heart and pistol dates it from between 1780 and 1827! By far my oldest knife, it gives me goose bumps just handling it knowing that it is close to 200 years old, sure wish I knew anything of it's history, the stories it could tell! Even though it's in kinda rough shape, with a broken blade, I feel pretty lucky to give this one a new home for a while...(Especially since I scored it for 6 bucks)
Can anyone tell me what the handle material is? Or any other info anyone would like to share would be much appreciated.
Mike

Very nice find, Mike Great to find such an old one. Handle covers look like horn to me.
Dan

That's a nice old English knife and the handles appear to be horn. The "heart and pistol" mark was granted to Jonathon Crookes in 1780 and was used by them up until 1903 when they were acquired by Joseph Allen.

SWEET find... My guess is horn also

Thanks for the input fellas! I was guessing horn as well, but it's so old it almost feels like wood of some sort....was horn a pretty common handle material in that time frame? What kind of horn would it be?

Very nice 313...it's knives like yours that keeps me constantly on the hunt for hidden treasure. Congrats on the find...this should have a special place in your collection.

313 Mike wrote:Thanks for the input fellas! I was guessing horn as well, but it's so old it almost feels like wood of some sort....was horn a pretty common handle material in that time frame? What kind of horn would it be?

Most likely it is cow horn.If you look at it under a magnifying lens you will see long straight(more or less)lines that form the horn which is essentially hair that is congealed.It was a popular material for knife scales because it could be readily formed into shapes and even imprinted with designa and lettering.Cow horn is usually a mixture of black and white with a touch of yellow in it occasionally and is opaque. Clear horn is usually a yellowish color and translucent to transparent and can come from water buffalo and some species of goat.Sheep horn is usually a brownish color and has a spiral shape.

Great info Knife7Nut, I appreciate your posting, I've admired your vintage knife postings for a while, I know you are an expert, thanks for sharing!

Mike