Table Knife Set (1 pair) Reynolds & Wadsworth Ironmongers Shear Steel Horn England 1871-1892

Late 19th century Sheffield made table knife set made for the Reynolds & Wadsworth Ironmongers and marked with Queen Victoria’s royal cypher V(crown)R. Reynolds & Wadsworth Ironmongers were in business from 1871 to 1892 and sold a wide variety of iron and steel goods from pots to guns. 

WHile not marked “Sheffield”, These have all the signs of being made in Sheffield and are in step with manufacturing style and design of the late 19th century with a long straight 5.5″ blade that has a puddle weld and a slightly larger fork than early and mid 19th century sets. The chamfered horn handles pinned in brass over a steeply tapering full tang are in really good condition, it is uncommon to find knives of this age with horn that are this nice. That said there are a few shallow cracks running horizontally along the tang and some light scuffs, otherwise uncommonly nice. 

While not specified this knife likely uses a shear steel in the blade, and like other Sheffield made table knives of its time it shows a ‘puddle weld’ near the bolster at the beginning of the blade opposite side as markings, almost looking like a thumbprint, this is where the hard shear steel is forge welded to the mild steel or iron bolster and tang. Forks were forged in a small mold and ground by hand and knife blade forged by hand to shape and then hand ground on a saddle grinder to finish the geometry being finished on smaller buffing wheels. Many of these process were in use for hundreds of years in Sheffield which really held its strength through the massive amount of low priced skilled labor available in Sheffield.