[Chris Evans]

Hi Gonzalo,

It is important to understand that the long facon, as currently defined, was a knife that was essential to the gauchos of old to hunt and slaughter the wild cattle and horses of the pampas, on which the subsisted. Because of its length and general shape, it had little or no application for more mundane tasks, left to smaller knives, as reflected by edicts of Rosas ( a long term ruler of Argentina to the mid 19th century) re banning facons from his estancias, but allowing the "puñal/cuchillo", a variant of the butcher's knife, because it was a necessary and thus legitimate tool.

Nomadic true gauchos, not the glorified rural labourers who later sequestred the name, those who roamed the pampas (flat grasslands) as free men and lived of wild cattle never amounted to a large population. Historians estimating that their numbers in 1797, in what is now the Buenos Aires province to a mere 8,000. To be sure the pampas took in more than that province, but even so, in their totality, they did not add up to more than a few tens of thousands. And outside of the pampas there were no gauchos.

So from this we can see that those who used and needed facons were few. And with the eventual demise of the wild cattle and horse population, absolutely essential to sustain the gaucho's life style, which was becoming evident by the early decades of the 19th century, if not earlier, the gaucho, his mode of living and facon were very much on the vane. After the revolutionary war of independence from Spain, the gaucho was outlawed, for practical considerations ceased to exists as a free man and was reduced to an agricultural labourer on the estancias of the oligarchy that ruled the land. Some became "montoneros" ( mounted gangs) and a few drifted to the remotest corners of the pampas to live on as before, but their era was largely over, and with it that of the facon.

From that point on, the long bladed facon was looked upon as a weapon, with no utilitarian application and for this reason rarely tolerated. In daily usage, it was replaced by the "puñal/cuchillo" and that was and is the knife most used in the region to this day.

Nevertheless, large "puñals" were colloquially often referred to as facons right into modern times, and this accounts for the mistaken impression that their use continued, which did not. We must remember that the strict classification/nomenclaturization of the various bladed ware of the region was something that was implemented in the 20th century and was brought about by historians and curators.

With the rise of the landed oligarchy came a need for status symbols and this accounts for the ornate silver furnitured bladeware that these days is attributed to the gauchos. Most facons, especially the better made and lavishly silver mounted ones belonged to estancia owners, their overseers, military men and leaders of montoneros - Though I hasten to concede that coarsely made silver decorated knives were owned by even the indians and not a few better heeled workers, especially in the second half of the 19th century.

From the above we can see that by the 20th century, the facon became a dress item to be worn of festive occassions and or being displayed as a conversation piece. Having spent not an inconsiderable amount of time in Sth America, I can assure everybody that anyone who would tuck a facon into their belt, save on dress parades and such like events, would be laughed off as a "fanfarron" (boastful poser), and this was true forty five yeras ago, as it is today.

In the 1940-60 period, the vast majority of traditional knives made in Argentina were either basic utilitarian or very ornate silver or German silver mounted "puñales/cuchillos" to be worn as dress accessories. To be sure, in recent times there has been a renaissance of traditional knife making in Argentina and imitation/replica facons are being made anew. But these are collectors items, very much like modern high end Spanish navajas, the blade shape and length precluding any practical application - We have to remember that wild cattle are no longer hunted from horseback in the old fashioned way with knives and lances.

Re Robert's knife: Not being an expert of bayonets, I cannot identify the age and provenance of the blade, though it appears to have been made in the 2nd half of the 19th century - Perhaps another forumite can help us here. Also, we have to remember that re-hilted bayonets and broken sword blades were not exclusive to Sth America, so this particular example could have come from other regions. However, the general appearance of the piece suggests a much earlier date than that of the mid 1900s.

Something else, a 20" blade is rather long for a facon, though by no means rare. Long facons were difficult and uncomfortable to wear in the traditional manner and as such were pinned under the saddle and thus commonly called "facon caronero" (saddle facon). To facilitate their carriage and drawing, they were generally mounted without a substantial hand-guard. So, a large facon fitted with a large hand-guard was definitely uncommon.

The handguard is untypical of those peculiar to Sh America - Its general shape fits, but not is construction which suggests having been cast or even forged, a mode of manufacture alien to the region until modern times, though not to Europe.

It may or may not be of Sth American provenance and if it did indeed come from the general region, who would have used it and for what purpose? Its rather elegant but Spartan appearance , is inconsistent with the typical silver embellishments that an ostentatious estanciero would have demanded, so that leaves us with perhaps a military man's sidearm. Of course, it could be no more than a curiosity made by a cutler for his own amusement, or as a film prop, out of bits and pieces - It is hard to say from the pictures, but the edge of the blade appears to have seen little use. And the handle appears more substantial than what can be generally obtained from cattle horn - More like Buffalo. So, to me it remains a mystery piece.

Cheers
Chris