Damascus Sgian Dubh in Wenge and Scottish Bog Oak, Scottish gift, wedding gift, groom gift, best man gift, mens gift

The Sgian Dubh is a ceremonial dagger that is traditionally worn (tucked into the sock) as part of Scottish Highland dress along with a kilt. The translation in Gaelic is dagger for “Sgian” and black for “Dubh”.
I have made the primary outer handle of this Sgian Dubh from some African Wenge. This beautiful tropical hardwood is extremely hard and is ofter used in the production of high quality musical instruments. Colour-wise is is jet black with streaks of dark brown.
I have combined the Wenge with some Scottish Bog Oak. I have been very aware of this materials existence for some time now but have been waiting to secure the right piece. This particular piece came from Muir of Clunes, 12 miles South West of Inverness. This is quite a rural, verdant and quite thickly wooded part of Scotland. My contact for this wood excavated quite a few pieces and had a very small section scientifically aged, it came back at approximately 5000 years old! To put this into context, this is when, slightly further down the road, Stonehenge was starting to be assembled. Bog Oak is created when the tree is buried in a peat bog and the wood is preserved by the acidic conditions. The wood is stained dark brown to black by the tannins in the acidic water. There is a fair amount of wastage of the wood until you get deeper into the piece. In its raw state it smells like a mix of rubber and organic material, not in any way rotten or decomposed. Working the wood is somewhat challenging, quite splintery very much like Snakewood or Ebony and is number 80 in my list of worked Hardwoods. Finished, the wood is at least as hard as fresh Oak and finishes to a fine lustre. Colour is predominately black with dark brown that has a deep iridescence and looks almost identical to Indian Ebony. As far as the ultimate Scottish Sgian Dubh wood (black wood), this is pretty much it although it does have the monopoly on colour as no other Scottish wood is quite so dark.
For a professional finish i have used some London Plane as a centre to lock the tang and the outer scales together. This piece came from a huge wind-snapped limb from a tree that grows in my Cousins garden in London. I actually got it about 9 years ago and have only used it to make a few clocks in my early days. Not actually found in the wild, London Plane is a hybrid cross between Oriental Plane and American Sycamore making this the only hybrid wood species that i use. Sometimes called the “Lungs of London” due to its ability to tolerate pollution. Colouration is a light orangy brown with darker flecs running throughout and a silvery iridescence. This is my newest combination design and i couldn’t be happier, what an absolute beauty!
The blade is made from Damascus steel. Damascus steel was first made over 2000 years ago and has a legendary status, it is referred to as the steel of the Ancients. It is thought to have originated in or near Damascus, Syria. During the Crusades, the Crusaders where in awe of this steel that they witnessed slicing through their own lesser quality swords. The exact process of making Damascus steel was lost around 1750 AD but it became very popular again in the 1970s with various craftsmen claiming to have rediscovered the process. The process involves taking multiple layers of metal and folding them together and bonding them by forge welding. If done correctly the metalsmith will end up with a blade that is both hard and flexible and of course have the swirling Damascus steel pattern that is so sought after. Each blade has its own unique pattern, just like a finger print. I have sourced top quality 15N20 Damascus steel blanks, they have a higher Nickel content for extra hardness and are simply stunning to look at, an absolute must have for any collection. There is one draw back with Damascus steel, due to the high carbon content it will rust and rust quickly. If the blade gets wet it must be dried quickly and if stored for a period of time, especially in an environment that could get damp, simply rub a little clear oil onto the blade to protect it. There is a factory edge on this Sgian Dubh.
To finish and protect the handle i first apply a sealer of Shellac and Cellulose Thinners to the wood, this brings out the colour. Then i apply two types of industrial wax, the same as used on my antler kilt pins. This gives a hard wearing finish and an attractive sheen not dissimilar to a polyurethane finish.
It comes complete with an attractive embossed black leather sheath and a black presentation box.
The Sgian Dubh measures:
Overall Length 177mm x Width 28mm x Depth 12.8mm
Blade Length 88mm x Width 24mm
As with all my pieces i have applied my company logo “UBC” with pyrography, in this case on the bottom rear of the handle.