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Higonokami Pocket Knife (Black Oxide)
Higonokami Pocket Knife (Black Oxide)
Higonokami Pocket Knife (Black Oxide)
Higonokami Pocket Knife (Black Oxide)
Higonokami Pocket Knife (Black Oxide)
R 870

Higonokami Pocket Knife (Black Oxide)

BANSHU HAMONO

Size Medium
+

Only left in stock

Higonokami pocket knife with a double-edged blade and black oxide handle. The blade is made from blue paper steel sandwiched within a softer iron, to protect it from shocks, while still offering a sharp cutting edge.

Two sizes are available: Extra Large and Medium.

  • XL when open: 210mm (92mm cutting edge)
  • Medium when open: 165mm (72mm cutting edge)

Each knife comes wrapped in cloth and packaged in a cardboard box.

Also available in brass and chrome plated handles.

Higonokami have a long history dating back to 1896 as a small blade which could be manufactured by blacksmiths who lost business due to the ban on samurais carrying swords in public. They became very popular as an everyday knife for Japanese people of all ages, but in 1961 another ban on carrying them to schools and other public places in Japan reduced their popularity. Albeit on a smaller scale, to this day they are still being manufactured in the same way and with the same materials as more than a century ago. 

Please note: Blue paper steel is a premium carbon knife steel with added chromium, but is not stainless. To clean the blade, wash it by hand with soapy water and dry thoroughly.

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BANSHU HAMONO is a collective brand from Hyōgo Prefecture in Japan, which has a 250+ year blacksmith history dating back to the first katana factory in 1744. The blacksmith traditions have continued across generations and today a diverse range of small businesses, each with each its own skilled craftsmen, still produce cutlery and tools for the home, studio and garden using the same age-old techniques. It works with traditional craftsmen to market their products.

NAGAO KANEKOMA FACTORY was established in 1894 by Komataro Nagao in Miki, now part of Hyogo Prefecture. With its twin city Ono, the Banshu region was known for cutlery and steel tool production. It became one of the manufacturers of higonokami shortly after establishment. The official guild of higonokami makers at one stage totalled forty members, but now Nagao Kanekoma Factory is the only one left. It is currently managed by the fifth generation blacksmith Mitsuo Nagao.