Language: Ainu
Source: John Batchelor; An Ainu-English-Japanese dictionary. 1905.
Description
Makiri-ibe is the Ainu word for the handle of a utility knife called makiri.1
They are typically carved from the same type of wood as the scabbard and are made as a single piece, so with no seem. The decorations usually consist of shallow carvings in the shape of fish scales or other stylized motifs.
Notes
1. John Batchelor; An Ainu-English-Japanese dictionary (including a grammar of the Ainu language). Tokyo Methodist Publishing House, 1905.
Examples
Three makiri.
Sold by Mandarin Mansion in 2022.
On Ainu wood carving
Here follows an interesting excerpt from Arnold Henry Savage Landor, who lived among the Ainu in 1893:
Arnold Henry Savage Landor;
Alone with the hairy Ainu: or, 3800 miles on a pack saddle in Yezo and a cruise to the Kurile islands.
London, John Murray. 1893. Pages 218-223.
Arnold Henry Savage Landor, 1865-1924.
Glossary of terms
|
# |
English |
Ainu |
|
| 1 | Knife blade | makiri-ibe / ibehe | |
| 2 | Knife handle | makiri-nip | |
| 3 | Knife sheath | makiri-saya | |
| 4 | Back of knife | mekkashike | |
| 5 | Edge | notak | |
| 6 | Point of knife | kanetuhu / etuhu | |
Further reading
Main glossary article: Makiri
Article: Knives and swords of the Ainu
