Gorham "Barnyard" or "Gilpen" Sterling Silver Youth Knife

This 7 3/8" long, 1.3 T. oz., youth knife (could double as a tea or dessert piece) has a hollow handle and flat, solid silver, blunt end blade.

It was made by Gorham, whose "lion, anchor, G" emblem and the word "Sterling" are imprinted on the blade backside.

An engaging design, the handle portrays pastoral scenes, with a woman and dog tending sheep on one side, and a man on horseback with scurrying chickens on the other.

While unnamed, the internet has embraced the name "Barnyard" for this pattern, which is the setting for the above described scenes.

In fact, however, this knife appears as a part of youth sets in Gorham's 1880 "Gilpen" pattern, which itself is similar to "Fontainebleau" and its children's version, "Piper."

Whatever the origins of this piece, it clearly was a special production item of elevated design, quality, and execution.

This is engraved with a script "R" and "1905" on the flat part of the handle near the join with the blade.

In excellent condition, it retains clear pattern detail that is free of polishing wear. The handle is without dents or splits, and the blade is well-shaped, absent tip wear or burrs, but it does have one crimp (small bend) about 1 3/8" from the end (visible as a shadow in the top figure in the above image).