This Shipworm Fossil Feast Knife is the perfect coastal cutter for ritual feasting and ceremony!
The damascus steel blade is 21 layers of 15n20 and 1084, pattern welded, twisted and forged to shape. A hidden tang construction is firmly held with a cast shibuichi pin.
The handle is made from local antler and leather spacers with stabilised salvaged kauri wood and a shibuichi guard which we cast in Riversdale Beach sand. Shibuichi is made from melting copper with silver.
A section of self-collected shipworm trace fossil in petrified wood which we found south of Riversdale Beach in the Wairarapa completes the handle.
Known to sailors as “shipworm” this saltwater worm-shaped clam has a long history of damaging ships. Through millions of years of evolution the two valves of its shell have been modified from protective devices into two small, but extremely effective grinding surfaces at one end that are used to bore into any piece of wood encountered in the ocean like termites of the sea.
Petrified wood is the name given to wood that has been turned into stone (fossilized) through the process of permineralization.
Due to the copper content of shibuichi it will patina beautifully as it ages! However this can be easily removed with toothpaste if preferred.
Blade length: 175mm
Overall length: 300mm
Year: 2020
Artist: Benjamin Madden
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If you would like to purchase this piece but live outside of New Zealand or Australia, please contact us directly to discuss your international shipping options. Thank you!