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SGIANS DUBH
(Gaelic Sgian Dubh, or "Black Knife")
Sgians Dubh are now a very
traditional part of Highland Dress. Some do not consider
a man in a kilt fully dressed unless he is wearing his sgian dubh.
Sgian Dubh is the Gaelic for "black knife." This name may have come
from the dark color of the knives or because of the fact that they were
hidden. These knives are utility blades rather than weapons.
Originally they were one half of a set of hunting knives, consisting of
a large dirk for butchering and a smaller knife for skinning. The huntsman
would keep the small skinning knife in the top of his hose as he butchered
the animal for convenience. In the nineteenth century, the gentry
adopted this fashion into their formal wear, and the dress sgian dubh was
born. The earliest depiction of a sgian dubh being worn is in an
1815 portrait of Colonel Alasdair Ronaldson MacDonnell of Glengarry, a copy of
which is
on display in the Scottish Tartans Museum.
Click either image below to
explore our ranges...
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Bullman Studios
Double-edged traditional biodag or dagger, hand crafted in a
variety of wood & bone options.
Made in
North Carolina. |
Charles Buyers
Wide range,
from casual to formal, traditional and contemporary.
Made in
Scotland. |
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