Antique GONON-GIRONDE Nogent-style French Carbon Steel Chef Knife RAZOR SHARP

This beautiful vintage chef knife was made in France by Gonon-Gironde, once one of that country's larger makers of knives and a finer one would be hard to find, especially in such beautiful condition as this. It is a SUPERB piece in SUPERB condition, still fully capable of providing outstanding performance to any chef whose vision and skills are commensurate with its balance and precision.

Of course, as you'd expect, it will chop, dice and mince to your heart's content--a demon in the quintessential chef knife size, measuring 14-7/8" long with a 9.75" blade. It will also shave WAFER-thin slices of charcuterie, tomatoes, onions, or anything else when used as a slicer, something French knives have always been better at than German ones. Condition is excellent, with no damage to blade, no cracks or looseness in handle, which is very rare, indeed, for this configuration. In short, it is a stunner.

This exceptional knife was recently given an EXTREMELY sharp professional edge and must be treated with extreme care or will land a careless user in the ER needing stitches. In the old days, many classically trained French chefs didn't consider a knife fit for professional use until it received its first "working" edge upon receipt from the factory. Sushi chefs continue this tradition with their rituals of water stones and the resulting keen of their blades is virtually alien to casual (and to many professional) users of Western indoctrination. This knife comes pretty close to just that kind of sharpness and you'll have no trouble finding a myriad of uses for it.

There are few words which adequately describe it more than just plain Wow! This knife was expertly hand-forged with what's known as a Nogent-style handle, a mangificent French design named for the city whose cutlery guilds pioneered using a rat-tail tang below the blade (tang, flared bolster and blade are one piece) to pierce the ebony handle, anchored with a corresponding hooked tang rod inserted from the bottom, with a white brass ferrule at the bolster to provide added strength. The great deal of labor that goes into this design (my personal favorite for a vintage chef's knife of any configuation) favors a lighter-weight, higher degree of balance and, in my humble opinion, the finest craftsmanship and beauty in a chef's knife. The casual observer might say something like, but it isn't all one piece like those fully forged Henckels knives I see at Bloomingdales! THIS design was the pinnacle of craftsmanship in chef's cutlery and was all but completely abandoned after WWII in favor of today's designs, only because they were far easier to mass produce.

These, however, required one guild to forge the blades, another to finish them, another to make the handles and the "hafter's guild" to fit them all together. If you're someone who knows the FEEL of fine knives, you won't have to use this knife twice to understand what it's capable of, and you will experience nothing short of a revelation of performance. Like all fine vintage carbon steel knives, it will rust if not carefully kept dry during use, but you'll be richly rewarded for your trouble with superior slicing in every way, shape and form. Carbon is also easier to rehone and does not require a blacksmith's skills to achieve the finest possible edge.

Wipe the knife clean when using it on wet or acidic foods. It WILL rust if not maintained properly. I apply a very thin coat of non-toxic mineral oil to blade and wooden handles periodically, to seal them from ambient moisture in the atmosphere (olive or corn oil will suffice). Our store's inventory is searchable using the search field or may be browsed by clicking on categories, with each option found on the left side of the store's homepage.

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The seller is "ralph1396" and is located in Los Angeles, California. This item can be shipped worldwide.

• Country/Region of Manufacture: France