Palm Leaf Manuscript Foldable Stylus Knife

[laEspadaAncha]

Originally Posted by Rich

I have seen several of these offered on ebay as "rug weaver's knives". Is there any truth to that story? It seemed a bit strange to me whenever I read that. Glad to know what they were actually used for.

Rich

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

I have a knife that to my uneducated eyes appears to be the same, or at least very similar to this type of knife. I bought it many years ago, and it was offered for sale with one that had an ivory handle, which I did not buy. Bought from an elderly middle eastern gentleman who told me it was a carpet maker's knife. Later a pocket knife collector told me the same thing.

However, that said, it does seem more logical that it is a scribe's knife.

Hi Rich & Alan,

These are fairly easily found along the Malabar coast of India, where they are described as being used as scribes' knives (for banana leaves IIRC).

That being said, I 've carried a pocket knife/folder for a good 36 years conservatively - and I can't imagine prescribing (just) a singular use for one... They're tools, with implements that can serve a number of functions, limited in the end only by their build quality and the ingenuity of the user! I can easily envision how a carpet maker - or any weaver for that matter - might find that stylus useful.

Cheers,
Chris