Fulham Broken Back Seax Reproduction

Fulham Seax Reproduction

Blade Material: 1095 carbon steel core and Tudor period wrought iron cladding (approx. date 1640)
Handle Material: Irish Bog Oak (4000 years old), Scottish Stag Antler and leather
Blade Length:  230mm/ 9 inches
Tang Style: Full hidden tang
Blade Thickness: 5mm
Handle Length: 147mm / 6 inches

Total knife length: 15inches/ 370mm

This knife is a historically accurate broken back Seax, based on the Fulham seax found in the Thames, London. The blade is forged from a high carbon steel core with iron outer cladding, a typical construction method in Anglo-Scandinavian knives. The cutting edge is forged from 1095 steel and the historical wrought iron is reclaimed from the original laminated iron window bars from a Tudor building constructed in 1640.

The 'broken back' style blade has a flat V shape geometry from the spine to the cutting edge and has been lightly etched to reveal the longitudinal striations of the different layers from the original forging/folding process of the iron. It has a traditional full hidden tang construction, with the tang burnt through the wood for a friction fit, then the end of the tang has been looped back over against the handle to secure a brass ring.  The stacked handle is made from ancient Bog Oak with a Scottish Stag Antler segement and leather spacers.

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.

The seax comes with a tooled Anglo-Scandinavian style sheath made from thick veg-tan cow leather, hand-sewn with artificial sinew, and sealed with beeswax and linseed oil. All of the brass fittings are handmade and individually riveted. This method protected the stitching and leather from the cutting edge of the blade and made for a much stronger sheath.

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.