Antique Folding Knife With Carved Bolster - Bust Of Henri IV France, XIXᵉ Century.

Rare French folding knife from the XIXᵉ century, with single-edged steel blade and counter-edge, bearing the signature "DUMAS" stamped on the heel. The blade shows a homogeneous old patina, with traces of use in keeping with its age.

The brass spindle is spring-mounted, in a typology characteristic of quality French cutlery of the XIXᵉ century.

The bolster is carved with a finely executed ivory bust of Henri IV: bearded face, deeply hollowed gadrooned burr, wavy hair and costume treated with a real concern for naturalism. The carving is distinguished by excellent legibility of the portrait and a distinctly superior quality of size, evoking the royal iconographic models disseminated from the XVIIᵉ century onwards and consistently taken up in the XIXᵉ century in the decorative arts.

An object at the crossroads of cutlery, miniature sculpture and monarchical iconography, this type of knife was intended for a bourgeois or literate clientele, sensitive to historical symbolism as much as to quality of execution.

The set is preserved in very fine condition, with intact, untouched carving and a consistent antique patina on all materials.

Characteristics

- Steel, brass, ivory

- Total open length: 26.5 cm

- Blade length: 11 cm

Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from a French expert.