BRADFORD, Penn. (November 20, 2019) – As early as the Case Brothers began making knives in upstate New York during the late 19th century, they were also methodically scrawling symbolic stamp designs into their blades. Soon, other knife manufacturers adopted similar practices.
Knife historians have since come to realize the critical value of these unique and important marks. Collectively, they document a timeline that spans more than 130 years of knives that bear the Case name.
Many of the early Case tang stamps were used during time spans that varied widely. But that changed in 1970, when the company began stamping blades with a “dot-dating” tang design that would span a finite decade of manufacturing. The annual removal of one of ten dots from the blade presses signaled the start of a new production year that collectors could recognize as new knives were released to dealer displays. From then on, it became possible to know the exact year in which each Case® knife was manufactured.
The year 2020 signals the beginning of another decade of Case knives, and with it comes a brand-new tang stamp design – one that recalls the early use of the “ten-dot” dating system – and the “CASE XX” marking that remains one of the most recognized company hallmarks.
