- Joined
- Oct 8, 2001
- Messages
- 12,330
Folks,
Some of you may remember my older posting about a fightera Mediterranean dirk that was made by an obscure and non-current maker. His name is Hill Pearce, and I dont believe he has been heard from since the very early 90s.
Since then, I have kept my eye out for any of his workwhich is very distinctive in style. The blades of his reknown are mostly reproductions of very old fancy knives. I was told there was pictures of his work in the Knives Annuals 82/83/84, so one of the TKLC listers was so very kind to loan me these annuals to browse. I am very grateful to him for this opportunity, and heres why:
After immersing myself in ALL of the fine knives that were made back then, I had a couple of Hills knife images stuck in my head. (Notice I caught myself from simply saying his knives...
) Then the latest A.G. Russells Cutting Edge catalog came out last week. There it was on page 25, a near EXACT copy of the knife displayed on page 121 of Knives 84. But....... heres how it read:
"Pickering -- 8 3/8 Persian style blade, carved ivory scales, damascus blade, hilt, and bolsters, fileworked tang, ¼ stock, nickel silver liners with filework, cracks at pins, no sheath, nice piece. $ xxx.xx"
The makers name was listed as Pickering. There is another of his knives listed in CE on the previous page, which looks nothing like it. I was certain this was the real thing, and since Pearces mark is a small script P, I figured they or the previous owner didnt even KNOW whos knife it was! Pickering seemed like a credible choice. The knife was pricey, but not out of control. I have never encountered his work elsewhere, so this was my only chance. CE also has a 14-day return policy which kept me somewhat secure. I decided to take a chance and order it that night. If I really wanted this makers work I would have to jump on it.
It arrived quickly and upon opening it I had one of those HOLY **** moments! This knife was much nicer than I was anticipating. Oh, and is it a Hill Pearce knife? YOU BET! The quality of his work is astounding. Here, take a look for yourself:
I took some time taking this composite shot of the knife, and I gotta tell you, I am VERY happy with this purchase. There is certainly some cared-for cracks in the tail of the handle around the pins, but this is characteristic of real ivory. It seems to be a very fragile material. Nonetheless, for me, it hasnt diminished the appeal of this knife at all.
The filework is simply unbelievable, and the shape of the blade and its composition are truly outstanding. There is some real time-consuming work performed in this knife, and I can only imagine what a current maker of this caliber would charge for this piece.
Heres a shot of my other Pearce knife for a side-by-side look:
So, it seems my collection is finding quite a following of Daggers. Im pleased to share this story and pics with you folks.
This isn't a knife that would appeal to most BladeForums members (you guys are HARDCORE!) but it works for me!
As always, comments welcome and recommended!
Coop
Some of you may remember my older posting about a fightera Mediterranean dirk that was made by an obscure and non-current maker. His name is Hill Pearce, and I dont believe he has been heard from since the very early 90s.
Since then, I have kept my eye out for any of his workwhich is very distinctive in style. The blades of his reknown are mostly reproductions of very old fancy knives. I was told there was pictures of his work in the Knives Annuals 82/83/84, so one of the TKLC listers was so very kind to loan me these annuals to browse. I am very grateful to him for this opportunity, and heres why:
After immersing myself in ALL of the fine knives that were made back then, I had a couple of Hills knife images stuck in my head. (Notice I caught myself from simply saying his knives...
) Then the latest A.G. Russells Cutting Edge catalog came out last week. There it was on page 25, a near EXACT copy of the knife displayed on page 121 of Knives 84. But....... heres how it read:"Pickering -- 8 3/8 Persian style blade, carved ivory scales, damascus blade, hilt, and bolsters, fileworked tang, ¼ stock, nickel silver liners with filework, cracks at pins, no sheath, nice piece. $ xxx.xx"
The makers name was listed as Pickering. There is another of his knives listed in CE on the previous page, which looks nothing like it. I was certain this was the real thing, and since Pearces mark is a small script P, I figured they or the previous owner didnt even KNOW whos knife it was! Pickering seemed like a credible choice. The knife was pricey, but not out of control. I have never encountered his work elsewhere, so this was my only chance. CE also has a 14-day return policy which kept me somewhat secure. I decided to take a chance and order it that night. If I really wanted this makers work I would have to jump on it.
It arrived quickly and upon opening it I had one of those HOLY **** moments! This knife was much nicer than I was anticipating. Oh, and is it a Hill Pearce knife? YOU BET! The quality of his work is astounding. Here, take a look for yourself:
I took some time taking this composite shot of the knife, and I gotta tell you, I am VERY happy with this purchase. There is certainly some cared-for cracks in the tail of the handle around the pins, but this is characteristic of real ivory. It seems to be a very fragile material. Nonetheless, for me, it hasnt diminished the appeal of this knife at all.
The filework is simply unbelievable, and the shape of the blade and its composition are truly outstanding. There is some real time-consuming work performed in this knife, and I can only imagine what a current maker of this caliber would charge for this piece.
Heres a shot of my other Pearce knife for a side-by-side look:
So, it seems my collection is finding quite a following of Daggers. Im pleased to share this story and pics with you folks.
This isn't a knife that would appeal to most BladeForums members (you guys are HARDCORE!
) but it works for me!As always, comments welcome and recommended!
Coop
