SMALLER TAOTIE KNIFE
Full Description:
Like the previous example, this knife is most striking for its alluring taotie-pommel with moving eyes, though the black horn hilt is instead carved in deep relief to convey leafy branches, and the copper quatrefoil guard has been made from a Chinese Imperial 20 cash copper coin (Yunnan Province, minted in 1906). The blade, furthermore, is cut close to its filed back-edge with a series of five bracketed fullers, and intentiaonally or by mistake seems to be facing the opposite way to what it should.