Department: Decorative Art

This knife was made by Omar Ramsden (1873-1939) who is regarded as one of the leading English designers of silverware. The knife has been hand forged from a single piece of silver. It has a simple, curving blade, which leads to an octagonal profile handle and finial. Ramsden's hand crafted designs proved to be commercially desirable and he enjoyed a flourishing business until his death in 1939. Revealing the object's Hidden History… As part of the DCF funded Living Metal project, we invited a number of silversmiths to view items from the collection in order to reveal their 'hidden histories'. Duncan Edwards examined the knife for us. Duncan is a self employed smith, cutler and lecturer at Freeman College. Hidden History: how was it made? The knife has been completely hand forged and filed from one piece of Sterling silver. There is no bolster or choil as in a traditional knife. Duncan described the knife as an example of "beautiful craftsmanship". The planishing (hammering) marks can still be seen on the edge of the handle. Duncan informed us that it is very hard to keep the edges on a hand forged handle, so the planishing was done very accurately to maintain its octagonal profile. This object forms part of the Bill Brown Collection. Supported by The Art Fund, Heritage Lottery Fund and the Friends of Sheffield Galleries & Museums Trust.