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IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 8:07 pm
by gabatgh
So I just dug this out of a box of antiques (mostly medals and 100+ year old ceramic items).
I didn't know anything about it when I found it, but after a few searches with the visible partial name, and all the info here at the forums, I know that it's an IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery quill knife. I'm guessing it's a deer leg. There's clearly markings inside the slabs, but I cannot tell what they're made of. It also looks like the blade has been sharpened a few times.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 8:11 pm
by doglegg
gabatgh, I have never seen on of those before, amazing.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 9:14 pm
by Ridgegrass
Looks like a horse's leg. Neat! French ivory (celliuloid)? J.O'.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 10:51 pm
by edge213
Hard to tell from the pictures, but it might be real ivory.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 11:22 pm
by knife7knut
Ridgegrass wrote: ↑Thu Feb 18, 2021 9:14 pm
Looks like a horse's leg. Neat! French ivory (celliuloid)? J.O'.
Definitely looks like ivory to me. That knife was likely made before celluloid was even invented.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 11:29 pm
by gabatgh
knife7knut wrote: ↑Thu Feb 18, 2021 11:22 pm
Ridgegrass wrote: ↑Thu Feb 18, 2021 9:14 pm
Looks like a horse's leg. Neat! French ivory (celliuloid)? J.O'.
Definitely looks like ivory to me. That knife was likely made before celluloid was even invented.
Well, celluloid was patented in 1869, to substitute for ivory for (mostly) billiard balls, false teeth, and piano keys.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 11:32 pm
by Steve Warden
Ridgegrass wrote: ↑Thu Feb 18, 2021 9:14 pm
Looks like a horse's leg. Neat!
That's what I thought.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 11:49 pm
by knife7knut
gabatgh wrote: ↑Thu Feb 18, 2021 11:29 pm
knife7knut wrote: ↑Thu Feb 18, 2021 11:22 pm
Ridgegrass wrote: ↑Thu Feb 18, 2021 9:14 pm
Looks like a horse's leg. Neat! French ivory (celliuloid)? J.O'.
Definitely looks like ivory to me. That knife was likely made before celluloid was even invented.
Well, celluloid was patented in 1869 substitute for ivory for (mostly) billiard balls, false teeth, and piano keys.
I believe that Wostenholm was using the "Celebrated Cutlery" mark from about the 1840's when the Washington Works was opened.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2021 12:01 am
by Ridgegrass
Given our ebay knife conversation I was hesitant to go out on the ivory limb.
But I do agree it looks a lot like ivory. J.O'.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2021 12:30 am
by Gunsil
Very cool knife!! Goins attributes the "Celebrated Cutlery" mark as 1850s-1890s, Levine says 1860s-90s, many regard it as a post civil war mark, still a cool knife. I have also seen English horse leg handled dirks from the 1870s-80s era. Looks like ivory to me too.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2021 1:00 am
by kootenay joe
Handles are elephant ivory & very good quality. Superb old knife. I have never seen one of these with an animal leg likeness. Usually it is a "Ladies Leg".
kj
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2021 3:31 am
by btrwtr
It is a horse leg figural. I had one some years ago and the handles were ivory and was marked Needham Brothers Celebrated. Very unusual figural and this is only the second I've seen. The knife I had was in super condition was sold to a dealer for $150 so not a cheap piece. I think it would well qualify as a quill knife.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2021 3:38 pm
by Ridgegrass
KJ: Maybe it's a lady horse.
(Sorry, couldn't resist.) J.O'.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2021 3:47 pm
by gabatgh
Ridgegrass wrote: ↑Sat Feb 20, 2021 3:38 pm
KJ: Maybe it's a lady horse.
What a night-mare of humor
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2021 4:27 pm
by doglegg
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2021 8:04 pm
by knife7knut
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2021 10:34 pm
by Ridgegrass
Glad you "ponied up" for it! Can you "trot out" any more?(Groan!)
J.O'. (This could be endless!)
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2021 2:36 am
by gabatgh
Well, we recently dug these out of a box. These are legs...
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2021 2:40 am
by knife7knut
gabatgh wrote: ↑Sun Feb 21, 2021 2:36 am
Well, we recently dug these out of a box. These are legs...
20210220_213414.jpg
20210220_213706.jpg
Nicest set of "gams" I've ever seen! Any maker's name on them?
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2021 5:55 am
by gabatgh
knife7knut wrote: ↑Sun Feb 21, 2021 2:40 am
Nicest set of "gams" I've ever seen! Any maker's name on them?
Sadly, no. Just "PATENT" on one of the blades.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2021 4:37 pm
by gabatgh
I forgot, I have this one too, a Peters Brothers with a bone handle and a Stanhope.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2021 6:42 pm
by knife7knut
gabatgh wrote: ↑Sun Feb 21, 2021 4:37 pm
I forgot, I have this one too, a Peters Brothers with a bone handle and a Stanhope.
5096.jpg
Nice one! I love the images in the old Stanhope viewers. I have a few knives(and one letter opener)that have them.Two of them are mechanical pencil knives made in Germany and souvenirs of Cuba.One is in English and the other in Spanish. The images in both are of two very young and very naked girls. The letter opener is a piece of carved wood(a tree branch)with the image of a Civil War battlefield;the "Battle above the Clouds" on Lookout Mountain Nov.24 1863.
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2021 7:01 pm
by gabatgh
This isn't just some lady, it's the famous actress Maud Granger. I wish there was a way to get in there and clean it up a little...
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2021 11:53 pm
by knife7knut
gabatgh wrote: ↑Sun Feb 21, 2021 7:01 pm
This isn't just some lady, it's the famous actress Maud Granger. I wish there was a way to get in there and clean it up a little...
Just out of curiosity;how did you take the image of the Stanhope?
Re: IXL George Wostenholm Celebrated Cutlery animal leg quill knife
Posted: Mon Feb 22, 2021 1:13 am
by gabatgh
I held a 10x loupe directly to the lens of my phone (Samsung Galaxy S8+) camera, and then held the stanhope to the loupe and adjusted them until the image was in focus and used my voice (by saying 'capture') to take the picture. By using my voice I don't have to move my hands... Then with Google Photos I rotated and cropped the pic. I've been using the loupe/phone thing together for years. Once in a while I'll take out the 20x loupe, but it's more finicky.
