Roman "Swiss Army Knife": GR.1.1991

Current Location: In storage

Titles

Roman "Swiss Army Knife"

Entities

Compound utensil

Description

Eating implement, folding, with three-pronged fork, spatula, pick, spike and knife.

As well as a knife, spoon, and fork, this implement provides a spike, spatula and small pick. The spike might have helped in extracting the meat from snails, and the spatula in poking sauce out of narrow-necked bottles: the pick could have served as a tooth-pick. While many less elaborate folding knives survive in bronze, this one’s complexity and the fact that it is made of silver suggest it is a luxury item, perhaps a useful gadget for a wealthy traveller.

Measurements and weight

Height: 88 mm
Width: 155 mm

Relative size of this object

What does this represent?

Relative size of this object is displayed using code inspired by Good Form and Spectacle's work on the British Museum's Waddeson Bequest website and their dimension drawer. They chose a tennis ball to represent a universally sized object, from which you could envisage the size of an object.

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bought (1990)

Dating

Middle Roman
201 AD - 300 AD

Components of the work

Knife composed of iron

Materials used in production

Silver

References and bibliographic entries

Identification numbers

Accession number: GR.1.1991
Primary reference Number: 70534
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Friday 14 May 2021

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Antiquities

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