primitive dirks

[Mark E.]

Hello there! Noticed your post...I have a similar project going. Are you intending to have your utinsels as well as your larger blade in antler? I have seen bone varieties, late 17th century, which is why I ask... Below are a few pictures that may help your blacksmith...



These are modern production (custom), and set into tines. The main dirk blade with would be correct for the time period-wide, flat. The tang fit of the untinsels is similar to that of a hidden tang knife, and leaves them very flat and 2-dimensional.



This is of mainly antlered handled cutlery-not so much dirk as in general. Might give you an idea of what to do with the antler, and has some more attractive points of connection. No idea how they are retained-though with an antler that thin, likely there is no pith, and they could be threaded into the antler, set with hide glue.



Here is a photo of a later set (1700's-main blade from a shattered backsword)
The utinsel handles are bone. I have toyed with deer thigh bone (whitetail)-it is too thin and brittle for a knife in my world, but for a low stress fork or spoon, should work well. You can see they solved the issue with a ferrule. No idea on how metal parts are retained-could be threaded thru on tangs, with a bone or something else filling the gaps.



This is a picture of mine in progress (early 1700's on the larger blade, also from a shattered backsword, set into a red deer crown). I picked roe deer antlers, because of their nativeness to Scotland, and their shape-they have a "hump" that fits the hand, no pith, and are small enough to fit up with a scabbard. I am doing fork, knife, spoon, and honing steel.

For my project, having used my current dirk's by-pieces, I plan to make my fork and spoon out of pewter-no rust that way...and if you have a rudimentary knowledge of metals casting, you could toy with moulds and such to get something very one-off. Also, if your resource for the dirk you are making has few examples of by-pieces for the era, look at the normal everyday utinsels-styles of knife, point count and curvature of fork tines, etc.-it would make sense for the dirk pieces to follow the current styles happening in the estates.