Cretan (?) knife with inscription for translation

[TVV]

Gentlemen,

Please take a look at this knife. Is it from Crete or from somewhere else? Can our Greek speaking members please translate the poem on one side of the blade?

Thank you,
Teodor

[Andreas]

Hello,
Not Cretan, one side is inscribed Kydoniai 30 October 1900. Kydoniai is the formal Greek name for the Turkish town of Ayvalık on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor, with a predominantly ethnic Greek population pre-1922. On the other side the inscription reads:
I eat bread with tears, (I drink) poisoned water
I have been raised with sorrows and sufferings
Regards,
Andreas

[Sylektis]

An attempt:

"I eat bread with tears, poisoned water...
... I am with with bitterness and sufferings."

Kydonies (Today Chania) 1900
30 October

[Sylektis]

Sorry, the correct:

"I eat bread with tears, poisoned water...
... I am breeds with bitterness and sufferings."

Kydonies (Today Chania) 1900
30 October

[eftihis]

Hi Teodor,
It is not from Crete, its from Aivali (Kydonies) in Asia Minor coast, in Turkey.
Please make a better photo of the last 2 words in the second row.

[Sylektis]

Ups :o !

I think Eftihis is right, sorry.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayvalık

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kydonia

Anyway, nice knife.

[TVV]

Gentlemen,

Thank you very much for the quick responses. Here is hopefully a better photo of the poem.

Teodor

[eftihis]

Thanks for the photo. Translation remains the same!

[TVV]

Thank you very much Eftihis. Why are these inscriptions on Greek knives so elegiac? Are they references to the Ottoman yoke or simply love related?

Teodor

[eftihis]

Hi Teodor,
Have a look at this past thread: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=14253&highlight=kydonia

[kronckew]

they are still making these inscribed knives in chania, crete. an elderly knife maker, Apostolis Pachtikos, made these:

not mine.
http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h17/cabbitmeow/Theseus1.jpg
http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h17/cabbitmeow/theseus3.jpg

mine.
http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s231/kronckew/72b0fc81-72a1-4cf2-9d9f-d45850c6d2d3.jpg

i gather he is actually a turk who immigrated to crete way back when & has been making knives there for 60+ years. i hope he still is. last i heard there were only 7 other makers left.

edited: apparently the other 7 have died. :(

apostolis signs his knives as 'armenis' as when he arrived from turkey, they mistakingly referred to him as the armenian :)