Cutting Edge 2 The Laguiole

mmmIn my earlier blog I told readers that I am a pocket knife enthusiast ( see Cutting Edge published in March ) At the time I promised, or rather threatened, to review a bit closer the regional knives of France.  I hope I don`t bore my readers by riding my hobby horse, but if I do please tell me. I might pay attention....
  OK, today I`d like to look closer at the most popular knife in France, the Laguiole. It`s easily recognised by it`s slim blade with the `stop` on the blunt edge, its narrow curved handle, and above all by the `mouche` or `abeille`attached to the end of the spring which retains the blade open or closed,

Laguiole is a small town in the Aubrac,  a high basalt plateau bordering three Departements, the Averon, the Cantal and the Lozere. A few small forges were sited here around 1830 which began making knife blades and fitments and the distinctive shape is said to be influenced by the Spanish navagas, which the local shepherds brought back when seeking work there. These Spanish knives also have a distinct `elbow` on the handle and a `cran force`, a system where the spring has a hook on the end which partially locks the blade in the open position. It is my theory that the earlier knives were true lock-knives and the `mouche` served to lift the spring to close the blade; nowadays a firm pressure on the blade is sufficient to close it.
   Laguioles normally have a ferrule at each end in steel or brass, though `plein manche` versions are found. The handles can be in almost any material, wood, horn, ivory or even mammoth ivory !
  The rivets which hold the sides of the handle in place are often arranged in a cross, as in the example in the top picture. Tradition has it that the lonely shepherd looking after his sheep during the summer on the high pastures could spike the open knife into their table and thus have an instant crucifix before which to make his devotions .
   Laguioles have usually just a single blade,  though a spike is sometimes found. When the empoverished shepherds sought work is Paris, often as Limonadiers in the late 19th Century a corkscrew was added and the fame of this attractive knife was spread beyond its rural origins.
  I hope this brief summary has whetted your appetite to know more of the regional knives of France; I might return to the subject later.  Bye for now!