Integral Damascus Gaucho with Ironwood

Product Description for Integral Damascus Gaucho with Ironwood

Maker: Luciano Dorneles (click to see more by this maker)
Item num: 91024
*** This is handmade and one-of-a-kind ***
Blade length: 10.25 in.
Total length: 15.75 in.
Blade height (at heel): 1.75 in.
Blade thickness (near bolster): 0.25 in.
Item weight: 14.75 oz.
Blade: Damascus hand forged from W1 and L6 carbon steels
Bolster: Integral damascus
Handle: Arizona desert ironwood
Description: Knives by Luciano Dorneles have a unique appearance and impact that is rarely achieved by other makers. This cuchillo gaucho is a spectacular example of his work. It has been in a single collection and has been well cared for. By all appearances, it could have been made yesterday.
Cuchillo gaucho is a generic term for a style of knife characteristic of the gauchos, horsemen of the plains of South America -- principally Argentina, of mestizo (mixed Spanish and Indian) heritage. Analogous to the cowboy of the American West and the Mexican vaquero, the gauchos were mounted cattlemen initially living and working in vast undeveloped areas at the fringes of "civilization".
Aside from its obvious potential as a weapon in duels, which were to mark rather than kill an adversary the cuchillo gaucho has a reputation as a truly multi-purpose tool and was used for tasks as diverse as slaughtering and skinning cattle, working leather, cutting wood, and making adobe bricks. In the wilderness, the gaucho could listen for distant approaches by sticking his knife into the ground and pressing an ear against its hilt. The knife was the gaucho's primary eating utensil: a large chunk of meat would be placed in the mouth and the excess cut off with an upward stroke of the knife, stopping short of amputation of the nose. Afterwards, it would serve as a toothpick. And, of course, in the gaucho's twilight in the 20th century, its use as a can opener was inevitable.
The fit and finish on this Cuchillo Gaucho is exceptional. The damascus pattern travels across the blade and through the integral damascus bolster. Integral damascus bolsters are extremely difficult to do and this is executed perfectly! The desert ironwood handle is carved into an octagon and is completed with a damascus pommel. Exceptional!


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