Near Mint Vintage South American Gaucho Cowboy Knife with 6” INOX Blade and Silver Fittings by QUERO-QUERO

Here on offer is a near mint vintage South American Gaucho cowboy knife with a 6” INOX polished blade and silver fittings by QUERO-QUERO.

These luxurious South American silver and sometimes gold embellished knives made their first appearances after the 1830/1840s, once the true local silversmith trade was established. In those early years, this type of costly knife was destined mainly for wealthy ranch and land owners, high ranking military or rich politicos and not for ordinary gauchos, who were usually very poor. However, the taste for flashy silver ornamented knives, horse headstalls and saddles quickly spread among gauchos and Indians, defining their most prized possessions and serving as symbols of power and rank. So, while both of these human types were usually very, very poor they tried by all means (including trade and robbery) to get some silver into their belongings.

This knife has a single edged pointed 6” bright stainless steel (INOX) blade, that is in near mint condition, with just some very light surface scratches, which stops it being mint.

It is etched on one side with the iconic "quero-quero" (southern lapwing) bird motif and the words QUERO-QUERO, along with INOX and the image of a twisted horn.

‘INOX’ is a French term, being short for "inoxydable", that indicates the blade is made from stainless steel. Stainless steel was invented in 1913 by Harry Brearley in Sheffield, UK.

The cast 800 grade silver handle has four sides, two are plain and two have a South American leaf and flower pattern. It is finished with a domed pommel with some leaf patterns and a tip fixing screw.

As it has a rounded shape bolster (known as bolster botón, meaning "button"), this indicates it is a Uruguayan or Southern Brazilian produced knife.

The sheath is in mint condition and looks to have also been cast in 800 grade silver. It has primarily a plain finish with a leaf pattern central band. The tip depicts the Quero Quero bird and it has a very ornate extended tip, depicting a sheep and cow’s head, cooking pot and Argentinian cowboy balls, known as boleadoras.

The long elaborate frog button depicts the image of a horse’s head and leaves.

This sheath also has the semicircular extension from the sheath mouth which covers and protects the blade's bolster while the knife is inside the sheath, a feature again usually associated with Brazilian and Uruguayan sheaths.

The knife has a 6” (15.3cm) long blade and the whole knife is 10.25” (26cm) long.

Inserted in its sheath, its total length is 11.9” (30cm) and it weighs 170g.

Please see my pictures for the details of the condition, which complement this description.

Please see my TERMS OF BUSINESS regarding Deliver Charges and Insurance regarding additional insurance cover, should you require it, BEFORE the item is dispatched.

The responsibility lies with the customer to check with your Customs restrictions that this item can be imported into your country.

Code: 52456