Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Jim McDougall · 10th December 2023, 12:54 PM

Thank you Fernando!
These are great insights into these seemingly obscure knives, and my example has intrigued me for many years, but now I want to finally learn more about it.
What you have added is really interesting about the dots.

Naturally we cannot know the intended meaning, but that these were deliberately placed in the blade at its production seems to defy the notion of a 'tally' of 'victories' in a just produced blade. This long held notion has been around a long time, and I think of the western lore tales of gunfighters notching the grips of their six shooters for 'kills'. This was of course 'dime novel' sensationalism as no gunfighter known ever defaced his gun in this way (the actual guns they used are well known, none have notches).
Maybe if the corvo was custom made for an individual, he might specify such a number with that in mind, but who knows.

However with these dots and the other blade embellishments you note, much as with sword blades, these may have various talismanic values it would seem. In Islamic sword blades, embedded gold metal dots like this are held as sort of a lucky charm, but unclear on what numerically varying cases might mean.

Most sources I have found do relate the 'macabre' nature of these knives, derisively known in Peruvian and Bolivian accounts as 'cutthroat knives' from the War of the Pacific (1879-1883). It seems the use of these corvo during this war is well documented, and 'terrible injuries and fatalities' were induced by them. The derisive use by bandits etc. was of course pejorative.

While artwork of battles of this war follow the typical convention of uniformed men in pitched battle with muskets etc. it seems likely the actual combats were far more unconventional. With forces largely of conscripted men, these Chileans were closely bound to their traditional weapon, the corvo, which was traditionally the weapon they always had at hand. Much of the fighting was close in, and with a skilled user, the corvo was deadly.

It seems discussion on these has come up several times over the past decade, and have had pretty good traction, but we need to learn more.
As always, these kinds of symbolic features, the DOTS are haunting!
"I gots to know!" (-downed miscreant to "Dirty Harry", 1971)

10th December 2023, 12:54 PM	#34
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 9,757	Thank you Fernando! These are great insights into these seemingly obscure knives, and my example has intrigued me for many years, but now I want to finally learn more about it. What you have added is really interesting about the dots. Naturally we cannot know the intended meaning, but that these were deliberately placed in the blade at its production seems to defy the notion of a 'tally' of 'victories' in a just produced blade. This long held notion has been around a long time, and I think of the western lore tales of gunfighters notching the grips of their six shooters for 'kills'. This was of course 'dime novel' sensationalism as no gunfighter known ever defaced his gun in this way (the actual guns they used are well known, none have notches). Maybe if the corvo was custom made for an individual, he might specify such a number with that in mind, but who knows. However with these dots and the other blade embellishments you note, much as with sword blades, these may have various talismanic values it would seem. In Islamic sword blades, embedded gold metal dots like this are held as sort of a lucky charm, but unclear on what numerically varying cases might mean. Most sources I have found do relate the 'macabre' nature of these knives, derisively known in Peruvian and Bolivian accounts as 'cutthroat knives' from the War of the Pacific (1879-1883). It seems the use of these corvo during this war is well documented, and 'terrible injuries and fatalities' were induced by them. The derisive use by bandits etc. was of course pejorative. While artwork of battles of this war follow the typical convention of uniformed men in pitched battle with muskets etc. it seems likely the actual combats were far more unconventional. With forces largely of conscripted men, these Chileans were closely bound to their traditional weapon, the corvo, which was traditionally the weapon they always had at hand. Much of the fighting was close in, and with a skilled user, the corvo was deadly. It seems discussion on these has come up several times over the past decade, and have had pretty good traction, but we need to learn more. As always, these kinds of symbolic features, the DOTS are haunting! "I gots to know!" (-downed miscreant to "Dirty Harry", 1971) Last edited by Jim McDougall; 10th December 2023 at 01:15 PM.