This early 18th century tortoiseshell fork with silver piqué design is part of a set of folding cutlery. Originally, the set consisted of a knife and fork with a matching leather case. The pair were designed as a travelling set and would have been used to eat fruit, and other food, on journeys or when dining outside. The folding mechanism and sleek leather case made the cutlery compact and portable, therefore perfect to stow in luggage or about one’s person. The type of hinge is called a “friction hinge”, it relies solely on manual movement, as opposed to the spring-loaded hinge introduced in the 17th century. Both the knife and fork feature a deep, hollow channel on the convex side to enable the hinge to move and the tool to fold neatly inside the handle.

Folding knives have been found across Europe, with the earliest dating from the Iron Age. The Romans also produced a variety of folding cutlery, including knives and spoons. With the introduction of the sheath folding-knives briefly fell out of fashion, until their resurgence in the mid -17th century. At this point the implements became more refined, with more valuable materials and richly decorated handles. This set features tortoiseshell scales on the handles inlaid with silver pins, in a technique called piqué point. The piqué technique was developed in France, and many English knife-makers were influenced by the increasingly popular and innovative French folding knives of the early 18th century. This cutlery set mimics table settings from this period, with the knife’s curving scimitar blade and pistol handle. However, this matching fork has only two tines. Typically, table settings from this period included three-tined forks, but the central tine would have impeded the folding mechanism, so they are less common in folding forks.