Physical description
Knife, steel the handle of ivory, carved with a portrait figure of Henry VIII, King of England, the neck of the blade damascened with gold.
Place of Origin
London, England (made)
Date
1607 (dated)
Artist/maker
Smyth, Arnold (possibly, maker)
Materials and Techniques
Steel, carved ivory and damascened gold
Marks and inscriptions
Mark: a dagger for the London Cutlers' Company
Mark: a crowned diamond
Dimensions
Length: 29.8 cm
Object history note
Reports on these knives in Art Referees Reports, Vol 1 (1868-March, 1869), 22903 ff; J.C. Robinson's Reports, June 1866-September 1867, 12991 ff, where it is stated that they had been "recently forwarded from Russia;" and ibid Vol.6 (September 1867-June 1868), 2389 ff, where it is stated that the knives came from Countess Kucheleff in St. Petersburg.
Descriptive line
Steel, carved ivory and damascened gold, London, 1607, mark of Arnold Smyth (possibly).
Exhibition History
Treasures of the Royal Courts: Tudors, Stuarts and the Russian Tsars (Victoria and Albert Museum)
The Golden Age of the English Court: From Henry VIII to Charles I (Moscow Kremlin Museums 24 Oct 2012-27 Jan 2013)
Labels and date
Treasures of the Royal Courts: Tudors, Stuarts and the Russian Tsars label text:
Fork and two knives
Fork 1632–3; knives dated 1607
This is the earliest surviving fork with English silver hallmarks. Forks were new to England, brought from Europe by returning travellers. The knives are
from a set with carved handles of English monarchs from William the Conqueror to James I.
London
Fork: by Richard Crosse; silver
Knives: blades probably made by Arnold Smyth; steel blades, etched
and damascened with gold, carved ivory handles set with semi-precious
stones and pastes
Fork: Inscribed with the crest of Frances Montagu, wife of John Manners,
Earl of Rutland, of Haddon Hall, Derbyshire; marked for Richard Crosse
Knives: Marked with a dagger for the London Cutlers’ Company and a
crowned diamond, probably for Arnold Smyth; inscribed ‘henry viii’ (463-1869)
and ‘elizabeth’ (465-1869)
V&A M.358-1923; 463, 465-1869
Materials
Gold; Ivory; Steel
Techniques
Carving; Forging (metal forming); Damascening
Subjects depicted
Henry VIII (King of England)
Categories
Metalwork; Tableware & cutlery; Eating
Collection code
MET
