June 12-13, 2019 Edged Weapon, Armor, & Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 6/12/2019
Extraordinary Scagel knife with 7" flat ground swept point blade marked on left side at ricasso "W.SCAGEL HANDMADE" and has Bill Scagel's iconic "Kris" stamp. The handle has two smooth slabs of elephant ivory attached to the tapered tang with 3 brass pins. Housed in its original tooled leather scabbard with brass HEISER/DENVER snap. Inlaid on the left grip and probably engraved by Bill Scagel himself is a diamond shaped silver name plate with the name "RUSS MOORE DAYTON OHIO" The only other known ivory mounted presentation Scagel was previously sold by Dr. Jim Lucie who wrote the definitive study on Scagel knives. And as a strange side note it was shipped to Ohio as well. William Scagel was the Grandfather of American custom knife makers in the modern era. He was born February 1875 in Ontario, Canada and in 1900 immigrated to the United States. In 1917 he opened his shop in Muskegon, MI where he worked in metal & cutlery and in the 1936-1937 period began his knife-making career and died in 1963. Mr. Scagel’s knives have been the inspiration for numerous custom knife-makers ever since. He produced knives from the tiniest bird & fish knife to the giant camp knives, along with axes & folding knives. He also produced numerous other articles such as copper-ware skillets, pots & pans. He even made corkscrews. His knives rarely come to market. CONDITION: Very fine. Blade is full length showing sharpening stone marks on blade with slight surface etching. The ivory has a wonderful, mellow golden patina. Sheath shows moderate wear with moderate soil, heavier on the back. Scabbard is very fine with leather being very supple and well cared for the stitching is solid and intact. Strap is intact with very minor period cut. This unbelievably rare Scagel knife will be the centerpiece of an advanced knife and or Bowie collection and is fresh to the market. TDW