Exceptional materials

Among the materials that Dozorme cutlery uses for its finest pieces, there is one that never ceases to amaze and fascinate us because of its beauty and texture: the shagreen.
Halfway between leather and mineral, it has a smooth appearance that reveals small rows of sparkling pearls. A true jewelery material that enhances Le Thiers® pocket knives by Dozorme. Indeed, this exceptional leather gives them a chic and precious touch while giving them a resolutely contemporary look.
Because just like the blade of a knife that must be perfect, the handle is a separate piece that requires to be dressed and adorned with the finest fabrics.

All about shagreen

At the same time, rare and precious, shagreen is a ray or shark leather used for many years in cabinet making, casing and more recently in leather goods. It must be said that it is by far the most resistant on the planet. This extraordinary resistance comes from the microscopic texture of its fibers that are crossed (like a fabric), instead of being parallel as on any other traditional leather. It is the tanning of this skin made of naturally crossed fibers which makes it possible to combine a beautiful skin granular, soft, extraordinarily resistant and of an original beauty.

Its name comes from its inventor, Jean-Claude Galluchat, a Master Craftsman of Louis XV who was the first, in the 18th century, to develop in France the use of this exceptional material. He had the habit of using this material to cover objects or small furniture on behalf of the Marquise de Pompadour.

Nowadays, the species of European rays being protected, the main and legal origin of the stingray is Thailand, where there is an abundance of a variety of stingray that is not on the list of endangered species and authorized to fish.

Discover without further delay the last born of the cutlery Dozorme, the pocket knife Le Thiers® by Dozorme adorned with blue stingray:

And do not hesitate to “shop” our pocket knives Le Thiers® Elégance Galuchat on our online sales site, La Grande Coutellerie !

Photo credit : Ludovic Combe

You will have noticed, number of exceptional Claude Dozorme’s knives, Le Thiers®, Laguiole or others is adorned with blades revealing patterns with rounded shapes, waves or curves. These blades are actually designed within the Dozorme cutlery from Damascus steel, which consists of a large number of layers forged together.

Damascus steel is obtained by folding and forging successively different pieces of steel. This process repeated several times makes it possible to obtain a single piece composed of a hundred successive layers. Once forged, this set, sort of puff of steel, will reveal all kinds of patterns.

Traditionally, the purpose of Damascus steel also known as Damast, Damask steel or folded steel was to improve the properties of a piece of steel. Today, it is the most complex forge technical to perform.

This is why, for its Damascus steel, the family factory installed in Thiers collaborates with Balbach a famous German specialist for 2 years now. It must be said that for Claudine Dozorme “Damascus Balbach is very high quality and forged in the rules of art! “.
Damascus Balbach steel will then be worked and integrated into the most beautiful pieces, whether pocket knives or kitchen knives, manufactured in Dozorme workshops.

Focus on Balbach Damast

The Markus Balbach Forge stands out for its extensive experience and skills in forging techniques. Established in 1963 as an artesan forge by Eduard Balbach, the forge still exists today in the German city of Iserlohn. It is run by master blacksmith Markus Balbach as a second-generation family business. In 1991 Markus Balbach set up a second forge, which is located in Laubuseschbach in the central German region of Hesse. There he started doing research and development on Damascus steels and finally managed to produce them on an industrial scale. The forging specialists around Markus have continually developed and perfected this forging technique, which is well over 2,000 years old.

Now a market leader, this family business provides large industrial companies as well as small artisanal cutlery stores. For the latter, Damascus steels are forged by hand, using a complex and unique process. Custom creations are also proposed according to the requests of the customers.

Balbach Damast®
Heinrich Wörner Straße 1-3
35789 Laubuseschbach
+49 (0) 6475 8911
info@balbachdamast.com
www.balbachdamast.com

You can also “shop” our Le Thiers® pocket knives with Damas blade and Le Thiers® RLT ball bearing with Damascus blade on our online sales site, La Grande Coutellerie !

At Claude Dozorme, nothing is left to chance ! Just as the knife blade has to be absolutely flawless, the h andle is a part in its own-right, carefully designed to give the object its exceptional quality and added value.Whether dressed in noble materials, leather or with inlay, Dozorme’s handles are adorned with their finery.

Today, we invite you to discover one of the most amazing materials that our factory uses for the design of its Laguiole folding knives or Le Thiers® in their luxury version: the mammoth molar or tusk.

Photo credit : Denis Pourcher

Exceptional material, the mammoth molar makes it possible to further enhance our ranges of pocket knives, to bring them both a note of originality and an extreme refinement.
And the height of chic, our mammoth molar knives, entirely made in France, in our factory, are mostly mounted with a Damascus steel blade from Balbach, a specialist whose all secrets will be revealed soon.

Photo credit : Ludovic Combe

Photo credit : Ludovic Combe

An origin that goes back to the beginning of time

Mammoths appeared on Earth 100,000 years ago and were hunted by prehistoric humans for their meat, fur and tusks that they used to make weapons, tools and statues. Disappeared 10,000 years ago, their defenses are currently in permafrost (eternal freeze) in Siberia and Alaska. These frozen lands melt with global warming. Remained trapped in the earth for thousands of years, these tusks have kept their incomparable texture and warm cream color. During their long stay underground, they absorbed minerals that may have colored them. Sometimes the defenses are found in a terrain containing metal oxides. In this case, by millennial infiltrations in the heart of the tusk, the copper oxides give it a blue-green color, while the iron oxides give brown to reddish tones.

This ivory is fossilized, so its trade is perfectly legal (unlike elephant ivory). In addition, mammoth ivory or mammoth molars are not subject to the Washington Convention and therefore do not require a certificate of authenticity.