Damascus Butcher Knife with Camel Bone Handle and Tooled Leather Sheath

A butcher knife is the plain pattern, a straight spine and a straight edge with a shallow belly at the front. It does the trimming and portioning once the large cuts are broken down. This one is an 8 inch Damascus blade, 13 inches overall, with polished camel bone scales over a full tang and a tooled leather sheath. Home butchers buy it, and so do people shopping for gifts.

Specification

The blade

The steel is Damascus, pattern welded over a high carbon core and etched so the light and dark layers show. The pattern is a twist drawn out along the whole 8 inches, with the bevel polished mirror bright. The spine runs straight out of the handle and drops gently into the point, and the edge stays straight until the belly. A straight edge sits flat on a board, which is what a long trimming stroke needs. The trade is the core, which is carbon, so it darkens and rusts if left wet.

The handle

The scales are camel bone, polished smooth, creamy white with fine veining and warm tan mottling through them. Bone is dense, it stays cool in the hand, and it takes a polish wood never reaches. No two sets match, because the veining comes from the material. Three brass pins run through into the tang, and the tang is full, so the steel shows as a bright line all round the bone. That line is how you tell a full tang.

What it is for

This is the knife for trimming fat and silverskin, squaring up steaks and slicing a cooked roast at the table. The 8 inch length takes a slice in one pass instead of sawing, and the straight edge holds contact with the board. It doubles as a kitchen knife for anyone who likes a long blade. It is not made for heavy chopping, and a cleaver is the shape built for that.

The leather

The sheath is cut and stitched for this knife, so the blade sits snug and does not rattle. The leather is vegetable tanned. A wide belt loop is stitched to the back, a strap with a snap closes over the handle, and a welt is sewn into the seam so the stitching sits clear of the edge. The stitching is done by hand in cream thread. The face is hand tooled with a carved rose and leaf inside a rope border, cut and shaded rather than pressed on by machine.

Who it suits

Damascus over polished bone puts this among the knives people leave out on a magnetic strip rather than in a drawer, and it still earns its keep every week.

• Home butchers trimming and portioning their meat
• Hunters cutting up their own venison after the hanging
• Cooks who want a longer straight blade
• Anyone buying a gift for someone who cooks

What comes in the box

• The Damascus butcher knife
• The tooled leather sheath
• A care card
• An engraving quote

Every piece is different

Every blade is forged, ground and finished by hand, so runs stay small and nothing repeats. The twist in the Damascus, the veining in the bone and the tooling will differ from the photographs. Yours will be its own piece.

Looking after it

Hand wash it in warm water and dry it straight away. Never leave it in the sink and never put it in a dishwasher. The gray patina that comes up on carbon steel is normal and protects the surface. Oil it lightly before it goes away, sharpen on a stone following the bevel already there, and keep it off ceramic boards. More in our knife care and sharpening page.

Put a name on it

Laser engraving is 20 dollars per piece and you add it on this page. Around 30 characters fits on the blade or the handle, so a name or date fits. We send a proof image before the laser runs, and it adds 3 to 5 business days. Free on orders of 10 pieces or more. See the engraving page.

Questions buyers ask

What is a butcher knife used for? It is the straight bladed knife for trimming and portioning meat.

How is it different from a cimeter? A cimeter is long and curved with a raised point, while this one stays straight.

What does full tang mean? The steel runs the whole length of the handle and shows all round the scales.

Will Damascus rust? The core is carbon steel, so yes if it is left wet. Dry it after washing.

Can it go in the dishwasher? No. Hand wash it and dry it straight away.

Will my knife look like the photo? No. The pattern, the bone and the tooling differ.

For a curved blade try the Damascus cimeter in buffalo horn, and for a wide blade the Damascus Serbian chef knife in burl wood. More is in cleavers and butcher knives, Damascus steel, and bone handle knives.