Exploring the History of the Italian Stiletto Knife

Introduction

The Italian stiletto knife is one of the oldest blades among all and features a different and unique design. The blade is quite sharp and turns on a pivot at its base. The blade is really a long, thin bit of metal which is generally the length of the whole grip of a hand. It is chopped down the middle and formed into a tight V type of alphabet that opens toward the blade of the knife. The blade of this Italian stiletto knife is usually quite sharp and it slashes across anything that passes through its way. This characteristic makes it a very effective blade. If this knife is a spring-assisted one, then the locking system of the knife powers a stick into an opening at the base of the blade’s edge, locking it into spot. 

Whenever you push the flipper or the thumb stud of the spring-assisted Italian knife, the locking pin loses its tension, and the compacted spring extends back to its unique V-shape, flicking the sharp blade into an upstanding position. 

The History and Origins

The stiletto blade stemmed out from the Latin word Stilus. The Stilus used to be a sort of knife expected to cut things and was quite thin. It comprised of a blade that was quite long and was drawn to a sharp point on which it ended. The Italian stiletto knife is said to be the invention of the 15th century and it was said that it was originated in Italy specifically and that is how it ended up being named as an Italian stiletto knife. Italian as in originated from Italy and stiletto because of its origins. It was used by the knights because of its capacity to slide between the holes of the chain mail system of protection while in wars and battles. 

The Medieval Times

In the Medieval period, the stiletto was produced from a thick bit of metal so that the blade cannot collapse especially if it was using a spring mechanism to operate instead of a fixed blade knife one. The blades of these knives had triangular segments on it most of the times, while some had precious stones embedded on them. 

The thick and durable materials of these blades gave them more strength and durability. The edges of these knives were not extremely sharp. This is why an Italian stiletto knife was not appropriate for wounding assaults. But these were the earlier times, later on very sharp and effective stiletto knives were manufactured and used. 

In a similar period, the knife gained much popularity among the professional killers as the weapon could be in all respects effectively hidden. This knife could cut the major organs and caused immediate death. The spill of blood is quite less and this is why they are best considered as concealed weapons.

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