In a sense, this knife was in the making for over twenty years. At least more than twenty years ago I drew the picture of a soaring eagle for the purpose of using it to adorn a knife. Initially, I wanted to etch the image on the blade, but I made this blade with a ridge, thus it could not be fitted on it. So I decided to use it on the leather sheath instead.

The blade is mirror-polished and it was a major PITA to take a picture. One day I will simply have to invest time and money in a better lighting setup. I just don’t want to.

The handle is made from the same material as the kestrel knife, but the inserts are only from a birch polypore. The big thick white pieces contrast nicely with the wood. Which has in my opinion a much more interesting pattern than the previous one.

To take a picture of the embossed sheath was a bugger too. It is too shiny and in most pictures, it gleamed like a naked bum. At some point I had to work with what I had, I could not re-take the photos forever.

Carving and embossing all the feathers was fairly difficult, especially the tips of the wings, and I am sure it could be done better. Sometimes I think I am punishing myself with these elaborate designs. But despite its flaws, this time I do like the end result. I think it looks handmade, but not ineptly made.

The metal fittings are from wire-brushed bronze and the washer at the end of the peened tang is shaped like a chrysanthemum blossom. It is already acquiring patina. I was thinking about whether to let it age naturally or whether to speed up the process and I decided to let things to their natural progression.

With the blade over 17 cm long, it is a big boi. But weighing just about 392 g with sheath, it is not particularly heavy. And since the point of balance is at the forefinger just at the boundary between the white polypore and the wood of the handle, it feels very light and nimble in the hand.