W. H. Morley & Sons Germany

amywilkerson

amywilkerson

Joined
Nov 18, 2001
Messages
348
I have recently begun collecting novelty knives and was very interested in the article in the July 2001 issue of Blade which discusses "hero knives". I have a small collection started and am very pleased with the finds I've made.

At a gun show today, I managed to add 7 to my collection. There is one knife that is puzzling to me though. On the one side there are two eyes on either side of three interlocking rings which contain the initials "F.L.T." The artwork appears to have been scrimshawed into what looks like bone of some sort. The stamp on the blades reads "W. H. Morley & Sons Germany". On the other side of the large blade, there is a stamped 4 leaf clover. I am fascinated by this knife and was hoping to find out more about it. If you can tell me anything about this knife, its history and value, I would be most appreciative!

FLT1.jpg
FLT2.jpg
FLT cloverleaf.jpg
 
Bernard Levine would probably know this, check on his forum.
 
Welcome to the forums! RA is right, Bernard's forum would be the best place to go for help. Any chance you could post a picture of your knife? WE LOVE PICTURES!:)
 
Thanks guys, I have posted a new thread in Bernard Levine's forum. I also visited his website today.
 
Hi guys, thanks for your great responses! I do feel welcomed in this knife forum.

I thought you might be interested in hearing what a scrimshaw artist, by the name of Kurt Sperry, had to say about the handle of this knife. And I quote:
"The handle is definitely of either elephant ivory or "French ivory" a celluloid-like material that has a pretty real-looking pattern that mimics the grain of elephant ivory. Two ways I can suggest to possibly differentiate between the two are first, by looking at the end grain- that is viewing the knife from the end. Elephant ivory when viewed from the end to show the end grain will have a distinctive cross-hatch to the grain, whereas French ivory lacks this cross-hatching. Another technique which can distinguish between the two is to heat a needle to red hot and prick it into the material in question in an inconspicuous spot, producing a wisp of smoke. French ivory will produce a distinct "plasticky" smell when this test is performed whereas real ivory will have a quite organic smell."

I will use this information in the future I'm sure! For those of you who might be interested in seeing Kurt's work, his website is located at Fine Art Scrimshaw
 
I have seen some of Kurt's work...very nice...thanks for sharing with everyone!


"Hunters seek what they [WANT].., Seekers hunt what they [NEED]"
 
Once again I know nothing about this particular knife. I do know that W.H. Morley & Sons was a New York based company that imported knives from Germany and Austia. They were part of the Adolph Kastor & Brothers company. They were around from c1913-1927.

The knives of this company are normally valued in the medium range depending of course on condition.
 
Well guys, this mystery has been finally solved. I received the following email from Richard White, who wrote the article in the July 2001 issue of Blade Magazine, "Hi-Yo Hero Knives, Away!". I would like to thank Mr. White personally for taking the time to write to me.

"Amy, Mr. Steve Shackleford of Blade forwarded me your email regarding your recent cutlery purchase. As a writer for Blade, I was the author of the article you referred to.
Your knife is a two bladed pen knife, almost in an "office knife style". It has "French ivory celluloid" handle material (not bone) which was an easy material upon which to inscribe advertising on. In this case, this is not an advertising knife but a "fraternal" knife. Fraternities included the Shriners, Masons, Elks, Moose, and even the KKK at one time. Yours is one which was given to members of the organization "International Order of Odd Fellows"; the IOOF.
The "all seeing eye" and the intertwining rings are both symbols of that organization. The F.L. T. inside of the rings stands for Frienship, Loyalty, and Truth; all ideals which the Odd Fellows stood for.
With regards to the actual producer of the knife, It was made by W. H. Morley and Sons, (who used a 4-leaf clover) as its symbol. Morley was in business from 1913 to about 1927, so that helps you date this particular knife.
For your information, I have a book out entitled "Advertising Cutlery" which has over 400 colored photographs of various advertising knives in 13 different categories. It is quite readable, and would help you a lot in narrowing your search for this interesting cutlery specialty. The book is $29.95, and was published by Schiffer Press. In this book, are some examples of various fraternal knives. If you are interested, (don't mean to "hawk" the book), I have copies available, and would send an autographed copy to you if you are interested. The price is as indicated, plus about 3.00 shipping.
hope this helps
Richard White"

Thanks to all those who replied and answered my questions!:D
 
I just received another reply from Mr. White (the author of the article):

Amy,
thanks for the reply. I would estimate that this knife is worth around $45.00. Advertising knives are just starting to come into their own. Except for those made by famous companies like Remington and Western States, most have been overlooked.
Be sure to look for those with good "pedigrees" (knife companies who made quality knives), as well as overall good condition, with full blades and good snap.
The hardest character knife to figure out authenticity is the Lone Ranger knife. It it stamped CAMCO, like the original, and had the same bullet sticking on the side. Those which look absolutely mint are probably new. Personally, I look for metal handled knives, some with figural designs (like tires, keys, etc.), with engraved advertising. Interesting ones are from products we don't usually use today, like asbestos, coal oil, corn processing, fire insurance, varnishes, etc.
I also look for metal sided knives with hardware store advertising. They seem to be interesting.
best of luck
Richard.

How nice to know that my knife is worth more than the $8 I paid for it! :D I agree with him that knives like this are overlooked, but that's good for me because that just means there's more out there for me! Don't get me wrong, I don't just collect novelty knives. My pride and joy is my SOG Seal Pup (purchased for me by my sweetie :) ), my Benchmade Ascent, my Kershaw Ken Onion Chive, and my cute little Spyderco Ladybug that hangs from my keychain next to my tiny Victorinox Swiss Army keychain knife. I read in another thread someone, presumably male, complaining about people demonizing people who happen to carry a knife. I feel his pain, but moreso because I am female! I don't care, I love my knives and will continue to collect them despite public opinion! I consider knives to be "functional works of art" and am shocked at the negative connotation they seem to have, especially after the events of Sept. 11. The hijackers used BOXCUTTERS for crying out loud! A real man would have used a SOG Seal knife or Tiger Shark! Gimme a break! But I digress, thanks for listening to me gripe. Also, thanks goes out to all the guys for accepting me!
 
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