Τraditional Cretan Knife Minotaur Ηorn
The Cretan knife, inseparable companion of every Cretan in the old times, accompanied the Cretans wherever they went, either as travelers or as immigrants, but also as soldiers. Cretan knives have a great sentimental value as they are considered symbols of Cretan gallantry and represent the spirit of Crete's resistance against any conqueror.
The Cretan traditional knife with stainless steel blade is offered as a gift to express a promise of everlasting friendship. The handle of this knife is made from furze wood and it has a bronze detail in the shape of Minotaur horn. The knife is accompanied by an elegant black leather sheath with the mythical Minotaur in golden colour on it. Adopting this Cretan tradition, you can now offer this special knife as a present with a mantinada of your choice engraved on the blade.
Below, there is a translation of one of the cretan poems (mantinada) that are engraved on the knives:
In Crete it's a tradition,
to offer a knife as a gift,
to honour their friends,
and those who are special.
The Cretan knife has a specific manufacturing form. Although the hilt varies, the blade's shape has certain characteristics. It is straight, though the side of the edge, a little before the end of the blade, curves sharply and ends at the point, which has a slight upward gradient. The manufacturing singularity of the Cretan dagger's point endows it with great penetrability. The Cretan dagger's hilt is called "manika". Although, its shape varies, there are three dominant types. In the first the hilt's end resembles a bird's beak, in the second the shape of the hilt's end is the same as in the 18th and 19th century cutlasses and in the third, which is the classical Cretan type, the hilt's end is V -shaped.
