Are you complete without a Sgian Dubh?

[Smayniac]

I carry a leatherman mostly everywhere I go for the same reason, It is so useful, however, when I am aboard my or any other sailing vessel I carry a knife in a scabbard either on my belt or tucked into my sock instead of my Sgian Dubh.

The reason here is simple, if a rope needs to be cut now, it needs the be cut now and not when I have unfastened the leather pouch, extracted the leatherman, unfolded the correct blade and then cut the rope.

When things go wrong on a sailing boat, they tend to go wrong quickly, badly and all over the place and a very quick response is usually the only way to stop things getting worse. Most sailors I know, including myself can get out a knife from a scabbard faster than they can think about it.

I've stayed out until now, but I am of much the same opinion as Mark on this. I carry a small multitools almost all the time. When kilted, I usually carry a locking folder tucked into my waistband. If I am boating or working as a rigger, I ALWAYS carry either a straight blade or a one hand opening folder, knife discipline is critical, but the right tool at the right time can be life or death in a boat.

While we're on the topic, I was once asked by a police officer outside my front door if I was carrying "a concealed dagger or dirk" while kilted around the house. There was a locking folder in my waistband, but he didn't seem to be overly concerned about it, more an awareness thing in case I didn't know the rules in this state.

Bob

[slohairt]

I always wear one when kilted. No one (official or otherwise) ever seems to notice it!

[Streetcar]

Sgian or not, I was brought up to believe that a Gentleman always carried (among other things) a knife.

[1MUNK3]

I've always maintained some form of arms no matter how I'm dressed since I was a wee lad and given my first blade by my Dad (except for when I'm in bed, then it's close by). As far has sgian dubh when kilted, I always wear a fully functional one (not something that can only open a letter).

[Panache]

Sgian or not, I was brought up to believe that a Gentleman always carried (among other things) a knife.

Hopefully one of those things is a hankerchief / pocket square.

There are few of us who do anymore

Cheers

Jamie

[Bugbear]

Hopefully one of those things is a hankerchief / pocket square.

There are few of us who do anymore

Cheers

Jamie

I do: a pocket square, a pocket watch, and a pocket knife.

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Gentlemen, regain your senses! In all probability the sgian dubh is of even lesser antiquity than the "modern" kilt. It seems to me that earliest identifiable appearance of the sgian dubh can be verifiably dated to about 1811, as seen in the portrait of Colonel Alasdair MacDondald of Glengarry painted by Raeburn. That it wasn't a de rigueur item of highland dress is obvious from its omission in the portrait of George IV painted by Wilkie in 1822 or there abouts. Although loaded down with virtually every possible Scottish accessory in this picture, the king isn't wearing a sgian dubh.

In 1852 Sir Edwin Landseer produced another of his ever popular romantic pictures, "Queen Victoria Landing at Loch Muick". The picture shows Victoria greeting her husband, Prince Albert, after a successful day's stag hunting. Quite clearly shown tucked into the top of Prince Albert's hose is his sgian dubh.

So what happened in those ensuing years that brought the sgian dubh into fashionable royal circles? Stag hunting, that's what. Before 1822 very few Britons ventured north in pursuit of stag hunting. But once Victoria and Albert had popularized the Highlands, stag hunting became one of the aristocratic "must do" past times.

It is my theory, supported by James D. Forman (author of The Scottish Dirk), that the sgian dubh was originally the game keeper's skinning knife, and it was probably taken from the sporran or coat pocket and thrust into the socking top as a matter of convenience when skinning out game. Aristocratic shooters, keen to emulate their highland hunt servants, undoubtedly did the same to mark themselves out as "hunters" (probably in much the same way as German hunters stuck the "gamsbart" into their shooting hats).

If further proof of this thesis is required then one only needs to look at the earliest surviving specimens of sgians dubh. Blades tend to be under four inches, with 3.25/3.75 inches the norm. The blades are clipped (as opposed to the spear point normally associated with the sgian dubh), and most of them show signs of rigorous use. In other words, the original sgians dubh were the hard-used tool of the professional huntsman, not some clever weapon devised for stealthy attack or last ditch self-defense. (Although, like a hammer, it could be used for attack or defense if it came to it.)

So, a five-inch blade on a sgian dubh? Anyone who has ever skinned out a deer, even in Texas, will tell you that the best tool for the job is a clip point skinning knife with about a 3-3.5-inch blade. Anything else tucked into the top of ones hose isn't a sgian dubh. It's a fantasy knife.

[Downix]

I carry a multitool instead, more fitting for what I do.

[Streetcar]

Hopefully one of those things is a hankerchief / pocket square.

There are few of us who do anymore

Cheers

Jamie

As a matter of fact, yes! That, pocket change and a lighter, even if you don't smoke. A gentleman must be prepared to light a woman's cigarette, dry her tears and call her a cab, depending on her (or your) needs.

[Andrewson]

I never wear a sgian duhb with my kilts, formal or informal. I don't own one and never have.

When I saw this thread I remembered that the first book I read about kilt wearing ("So you're Going to Wear the Kilt" by J Charles Thompson) says you are perfectly properly dressed without one. That chimed with my feeling that I never had any wish, or need, to carry a knife so there was no need to invest in a sgian duhb.

For all the reasons given by Steve and MacMillan of Rathdown above, I do not regret my decision.