Letter knife

This sterling silver letter knife, produced in Sweden, exemplifies the precision and material refinement associated with Scandinavian mid-20th-century silverwork. The piece is stamped “STERLING 925 FS,” indicating it is composed of 92.5% pure silver in accordance with international sterling standards, and likely originates from a specialist silversmith or small-scale workshop, though the designer remains unidentified.

The knife features an elongated, triangular blade with a subtly rounded tip and a straight cutting edge, designed specifically for opening paper envelopes with minimal resistance. Its proportions are slender and clean, reflecting a functionalist approach to form. The blade’s surface retains a polished finish, now lightly marked by oxidation and faint wear—an expected and honest sign of age and practical use.

The handle distinguishes the piece through its fine textural detail. Constructed with a tightly woven mesh pattern, the surface offers both tactile grip and visual complexity. The handle gently flares toward the end, creating a broad, trapezoidal profile that balances the linearity of the blade and ensures ergonomic stability when held. This subtle variation in form brings a sculptural quality to an otherwise utilitarian object.

Though unsigned, the knife clearly reflects the design ethos of Scandinavian modernism, where attention to everyday objects extended beyond pure function to include proportion, material tactility, and understated elegance. In particular, the use of silver mesh as a design element suggests an intersection of jewelry craft and industrial design, practices often interwoven in Nordic applied arts of the period.

Measuring 20 cm in length, 2 cm in width, and 0.5 cm in thickness (approximately 7.9 x 0.8 x 0.2 inches), the knife remains in good vintage condition. Surface oxidation and light marks on the blade are consistent with age and use, while the mesh handle remains structurally sound and visually uniform. As both a functional instrument and a minimalist decorative object, this letter knife is a finely crafted example of Swedish silver design from the mid-century era.