1940 Olympic Knife

The 1940 summer and winter Olympics were both scheduled to be held in Japan, the first non-Western country to host the games, but Japan forfeited its rights in 1937 when it went to war with China. The 1940 games were initially rebooked for Helsinki, Finland in the summer and the German town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the winter, but finally canceled in 1939 with Hitler’s invasion of Poland and Finland's defense against invading Russia.

This is a typical well made puukko and would have made a memorable gift for athletes and attendees. Alas, it was not meant to be.

On the handle of this knife is a decal depicting the silhouette of Finland with the Olympic rings and the year 1940. The knife and sheath are very sturdily made. In the blood groove is the maker and town, "Iisakki Järvenpää, Kauhava". Under that is written "Erikoisvuolu" which translates to something like special slicing (for wood).

The sheath is leather and embossed with an image of a moose. There are 2 leather tassels for decoration and for shaking to scare the evil spirits before the hunt. Finland has earned medals at every Olympics since 1908, a feat matched only by Finland's neighboring country Sweden.



Product Details:

• Blade: 4" Forged Carbon Steel
• Handle: 4.5" Curly Birch
• Bolsters: Copper
• Total length of knife: 8.5”
• Sheath: Leather