The knife’s been reigning far and wide since the dawn of civilization. It’s the first and the most influential survival tool that homo sapiens made and mastered. It’s ever-present in our lives, and now, it has become an extension of us. It unites us all. Every race, every generation, every culture, and empire have had it at the center of their history. And even in this day and age of digital tech, it reigns supreme high and low - from the humble kitchen to space stations hovering above the exosphere. That truly is the grand magnitude of the knife’s predominance. It’s ubiquitous. It’s an everyday essential we can’t do without.
But it begs the question - how well do you really know your knife? You’re about to find out yourself as we reveal some knife facts that are stranger than fiction.
Did You Know Knives Were Used 2.5 Million Years Ago?
Imagine that. Knives were used by our ancestors millions of years ago when we were technically apes. These ancient stone relics hardly bear any resemblance to the silk-smooth OTF knives we know now. In fact, unless you have a pair of expertly trained eyes, you might not even know these sharp-edged stone flakes were knives. Archeological digs show that these sharpened stones date back to 2.5 million years, and were used to harvest, build, kill and eat. It went better when these were turned into spearheads for hunting. In fact, sharpened tools might have been used even earlier but we just don’t have the evidence to support it yet.
Did You Know The World’s Largest Knife Is ...
When we talk about large knives, most imagine a fixed blade chopper, a machete, an ax et al, But you wouldn’t imagine OTF knives or automatic knives. And you’d be right. The largest Bowie knife is a whopping 6.24 m (20 ft 6 in) long. That’s taller than 3 adults placed one on top of another. And the largest table knife measures a jaw-dropping 2.48 m (8 ft 1.64 in) in length, 19.5 cm (7.68 in) in width. That’s taller than the tallest man you’ve ever seen.
The Most Expensive Knife Ever
So you think high-end OTF knives forged from the finest steel are exorbitant? Check this out. This knife, named ‘Gem Of The Orient’ - crafted by Buster Warenski, is embellished with 9 starry diamonds and 153 emeralds. WOW! Some say it took Warenski a decade to craft the knife. To date it’s the most expensive knife known to man, fetching a mindblowing $2.1 million at an auction.
And Bet You Didn’t Know … The Extraterrestrial Knife
The most intriguing knife of all was found entombed. It belonged to the most famous of all pharaohs, the King of all kings from the land of the forever mystery - Egypt. Yes, I’m referring to the most renowned Pharaoh in history - Tutankhamen. His life was short but illustrious and shrouded in mystery. Among his myriad of wealth and possession that still intrigue millions is a knife that mystifies all including scholars. A dagger was entombed alongside the mummy of the legendary pharaoh. Now science reveals that it was forged from iron that came from a meteorite. The knife lay unrusted when discovered and has baffled scientists and Egyptologists.
