The term "Kauhava knife" refers to knives with lacquered birch bark handles. The Vallesmanni is a longer-bladed version of the Kauhava knife, featuring a 15 cm blade made from stainless steel. The name "Vallesmanni" is a local dialect word meaning police chief.
The upper bolster of the horse-headed knife, as its name suggests, is cast in brass in the shape of a horse's head. These horse-headed knives have been found dating back to the early 1880s under two names: Iisakki Järvenpää and his cousin Juho Kustaa Lammi. These two men were the inventors of the entire knife concept, who together conceived, experimented, and made these knives at the beginning of their careers.
As for the origin of the horse's head on the knife, there are various stories. The most credible one is that J.K. Lammi, while serving in the Dragoon Regiment in Vaasa, saw a riding crop with a horse's head cast on the end and got the idea to apply the same concept to a knife handle.
He and Iisakki Järvenpää then developed and produced these horse-headed knives for their customers, together and individually. According to oral tradition, it is possible that in some larger orders, there were similar knives bearing the names of both of these makers.
The Horse Head Knife has always been produced at a large scale at Iisakki Järvenpää. Over the years it has been constructed with many varying handle materials, including birch bark, wood, Galalith, ebonite, and bone. Today, the horse head's shape remains the same and is still made from lacquered birch bark.
The decorations on the bolster of the knife and on the upper and lower fittings of the sheath are engraved by hand. The sheath of the horsehead knife is made of light-colored leather, featuring a decorative brass tip fitting and traditional patterns in the leather.
RESTRICTIONS:
This knife cannot be delivered to JAPAN due to local restrictions (blade is over 15 cm).
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