Toru Yamashita - blacksmith and sicklemaker in Japan - was asked to make a kid-friendly knife for teaching kids to properly sharpen their pencils and his popular whale knives were born. Equal parts sharp and adorable, these multipurpose utility knives can keep your life on point from the kitchen to the office to the outdoors. Each knife is still hand made and hand forged in the Kochi prefecture of Japan.
Available in (shown top to bottom): minke whale, the original sperm whale, and fin whale designs.
High carbon white steel core, black forged finish.
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The wonderful Aogami folding knife was first created in Miki, Hyogo prefecture in the late 1800s by the Higonokami company. They came about at a time when the demand for Japanese swords was in decline. Aogami means “blue paper steel” and refers to a mix of white carbon steel, tungsten and chromium. It is very durable and is often used in chef’s knives. The brass handle bears the company’s signature.
The Kujira/Whale Knives were originally made by the blacksmith Toru Yamashita, commissioned by a mother looking for a knife without a sharp tip for her child to use to sharpen pencils. The first knife, with a round head, resembled a sperm whale-- but there are now six different kinds of whale knife, including the minke and fin. They have a high carbon white steel core and are made utilizing a nearly 700 year old knife making technique from their origin place, Tosa-- a seaside town known for its whale watching.
