Paper knife, lucite blade and silver knob with moss agate, Italy, 1960s.

Italy circa 1960.

The letter opener or paper knife was originally used to cut the pages of hand-printed books, where the folding of printed sheets created closed edges that required cutting the paper before reading. Its use gradually shifted to opening envelopes. This example is made of two parts: the cutting edge is made of lucite and the handle is made of satin-finished silver gilt. At the center of the handle is an oval moss agate, set in a gilded silver bezel. Italy, circa 1960.

0,25” – 1 CM H 9,75” – 25 CM L 1,25 “ – 3 CM D

REF: M5954