Confederate Bowie Knife

By John Sexton · Originally published November 2017 · p. 20

Though there are a few authentic Confederate knives maker- marked, there are none inspected “C.S.”.

Confederate Bowie Knife Dear John: I have been trying to do some research on a James Conning Confederate knife that I have. From what I gather he only made the Bowie style knives upon special order. That is just what I have read though, but I have yet to find one online. I was wondering if you could tell me anything about this example. I have attached photos. It measures 15 ¼ inches long. The blade is 10 inches long x 1 ¾ inches at the widest. It weighs 1 pound, 5 ounces. The handle appears to be made of bone. I would greatly appreciate anything you can tell me. Mary

Dear Mary: Unfortunately, this particular knife is a very clever fake Confederate Bowie knife. James Conning of Mobile, Ala., was a well-known jeweler and military goods dealer prior to the Civil War. He also made swords and Bowie-bayonets during the first couple of years of the war. His swords are among the finest made in the South. Jacob Faser is given credit for the high quality as he was a trained cutler working for Widman of Philadelphia before overseeing the Conning Sword Factory. Since I have written my text with co-authors Melton and Phillips, Confederate Bowie

Knives, I have seen numerous fantasy and other fraudulent forms of Confederate knives. This particular knife is more in the style of a Sheffield Bowie of the antebellum period, but just in style. There are other similar impositions with other added maker’s names. Fake knives of this genre have only started to appear in quantity in the last few years, though they have been around since the early 1960’s. Rarely are original Confederate Bowie knives maker-marked. It seems all the fakes, however, not only have the maker’s mark with their cities, are also dated quite prominently. John is an certified appraiser with International Society of Appraisers specializing in Civil War memorabilia. He authenticates and evaluates other rare and valuable historic items as well. His website is www.civilwardealer.com. He is coauthor of the book Confederate Bowie Knives (2012) by Jack Melton, Josh Phillips and John Sexton, that was published by Mowbray Publishing Inc. Send “Ask The Appraiser” questions and photographs to [email protected].

Whoever stamped this knife, it appears they put the M upside down. Very rarely are Confederate edged weapons dated with a stamp though often Confederate made Bowies are dry pencil etched with the dates of presentation.

Obverse of blade that has the stamp C. S. / MOBILE / ALA.

This big clip point Bowie is in the style of knives made in Sheffield, England, circa 1850, however, this example has an exaggerated large crossguard and a smaller grip than usually seen on Sheffield knives.