The earliest crooked knives were composed of just a blade, which was carried and attached to a makeshift handle on the spot and secured by wrapping with wet rawhide, leather, wire or store twine.Ĭrooked knives were not only useful in making canoes, paddles, sleds and snowshoes, but also for whittling cups, bowls and spoons. Indians were adept at recycling materials, and often re-purposed steel from a straight razor or a file for use as a knife blade. The crooked knife gets its name not from the shape of the handle, but the shape and placement of the blade. The flat edge of the blade is always on the bottom, against the wood being carved, and the beveled edge is on top. You can tell whether a crooked knife was made for a left or right-handed carver by looking at the blade. While this may sound dangerous, it is quite safe, as only small shavings of wood are removed at a time. The knife is held with the palm of the hand facing upward and drawn toward the carver’s chest. The tip of the blade is up-swept, so as to avoid digging into the wood while carving. These tribes were canoe, sled and snowshoe builders, and the crooked knife reflects the unique needs of their craft. Woodlands tribes include those in the Northeast, such as the Micmac, Penobscot, Maliseet and Passamaquoddy, as well as those in the Eastern, Central and Western Great Lakes regions, such as the Iroquois, Huron, Cree and Chippewa tribes. The crooked knife is a one-handed knife invented by the woodland Native Americans.
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