So here's an interesting one. I got this Non XLL in a lot I got on fleabay I think. Im honestly not really sure since it has been languishing for a little while.This is how it came although the pieces were all together but still broken as they are.
Attachment 352925
Attachment 352926
Attachment 352927
I have cleaned the blade up a bit but it was in pretty good condition, very restorable. I always liked the complex grinding, the thumb notch and the jimped upper tang.
It did always seem a little odd that the trademark was stamped but no maker mark. As I was cleaning it tonight I thought, "I wonder why Joseph Allen wasn't stamped on it so, for no real reason I looked it up.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with this resource I would encourage you to look at "name on a knife blade." You can just Google it but here is a link
https://hawleysheffieldknives.com/
It is a sub site of the Hawley Collection which is apparently a museum. Not sure of their entire purpose but they have a major emphasis on cutlery.
Anyway, to cut to the chase...as I looked through the vast history they have posted about Allen I followed the link to Unwin and Rodgers from whom the trademark was purchased. They had an even more extensive history about the latter mentioned firm.
It seems that Joseph Allen bought the Non XLL name from the bankrupt Unwin and Rodgers in 1883. A look at the stamping shows that it is marked simply "Sheffield" with no "England," which dates it to before 1890. This and the style of the grind puts it quite near this 1883 mark. Furthermore, the historical account tells about how Philip Unwin marked blades with James Rodgers name even after his death with no mention of his own because it lent to being confused with the much more sought after Joseph Rodgers name.
So...the question is, is this in fact a Joseph Allen or is it an Unwin and Rodgers?????
