[RESERVED FOR KRISTINA] Hand-forged Viking Puukko with laminated iron & steel blade and English Yew Burr handle

Hand-forged Fire welded Bloomery Steel Viking Knife with Spalted English Yew Burr handle.

Blade Material: 1095 carbon steel core & cutting edge with Tudor period wrought iron cladding (approx. date 1640)
Handle Material: English Yew Burr
Blade Length: 95mm
Tang Style:  Full hidden tang
Blade Thickness at spine: 4mm
Handle Length: 107mm
Total knife length: 202mm

This knife is a historically accurate Viking knife, based on archaelogical finds from sites around the British Isles and Scandinavia. The blade has been forged from three layers of iron & steel, fire welded together. The cutting edge & core is 1095 carbon steel and the outer layers are antique wrought iron, reclaimed window bars from a Tudor building constructed in 1640.

In accordance with historical examples of Viking age knives the blade has a flat grind with a slightly convexed edge that has been sharpened using traditional natural stones.

The blade has been heavily etched to reveal the longitudinal striations of the different layers from the original forging/folding process in the laminated iron and the contrast between the iron & steel. It has a traditional hidden tang construction, with the tang burnt into the wood for a friction fit, with the tip of the tang folded back against the butt of the handle whilst the metal is still hot. No modern epoxies or glues have been used. The handle has been hand-carved from a piece of Yew Burr and has a slightly egg-shaped cross-section, as was common for Viking age knives.

After being carved into shape, the handle has been hand-sanded and rubbed with several coats of boiled linseed oil to protect the wood. The wood has then been sealed and waterproofed with a layer of beeswax from our own apiaries.

This knife comes with a traditional Scandinavian style deep sheath. It is made from a hand-carved wooden insert for the blade surrounded by 2mm thick veg-tan leather. It has been hand-sewn with artificial sinew, and sealed with beeswax and linseed oil.

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All my knives are forged by hand using traditional blacksmithing methods at Willslock Forge in Staffordshire, England. Each knife has been forged from high carbon steel. I usually use either 1080, 01 or 1095, and sometimes antique historical steels such as crucible steel or shear steel. I forge as close to finish as possible, creating the knife shape and setting the bevels on the anvil. My aim is to make my knives with minimal use of power tools, and I take a lot of inspiration from historical knives and smithing techniques. After the initial forging, I use files to shape the bevels. Once the blade is about 80% sharpened, it goes back into the forge for the heat treatment, where it is hardened and tempered to give the steel maximum strength and durability.  The blades are then cleaned, given their final sharpen using whetstones, hand sanded and polished up.

The handles are all carved by hand and made from locally sourced wood, bone and antler - I avoid using any plastics, resins or synthetic materials. Wherever I can, I try to repurpose salvaged and upcycled materials in order to create beautiful new knives and tools.  I usually leave a brut de forge, or forge finish, on most of my blades because I like that the hammer marks tell the story of the knife's creation on the anvil, and the forge finish differentiates the knife from all the mass-produced, factory made knives out there.