Four slaughterer’s knives, products of H. Pape Nachfl. [Nachfolger]. Memel, East Prussia, today Klaipėda, Lithuania, [early 20th century]. Housed in unique, matching, decorated wooden boxes, probably the handiwork of a Lithuanian-Jewish carpenter in the early 20th century (or in the early decades of that century).
Steel and bone; wood, carved and etched.
Set comprising four slaughterer’s knives – two for slaughtering fowl, one for slaughtering small livestock (incl. sheep, goats, and small cattle), and one for slaughtering larger livestock (larger cattle). All four are the products of H. Pape, who manufactured slaughtering knives and circumcision knives in Memel in the last decades of the 19th century and in the early 20th.
Each one of the knives is housed in a uniquely tailored box, with a lid made to be tilted open, rotating on a screw-hinge. All four boxes were expertly and creatively carved in wood, most likely by a Lithuanian-Jewish carpenter, who inscribed each one with a biblical Hebrew verse relevant to the purpose of each particular knife, along with an engraving depicting the appropriate kosher animal for which the knife was intended: "Of all clean birds you may eat" (Deuteronomy 14:11) with illustrations of a rooster and quail; "Of all clean winged things you may eat" (Deuteronomy 14:20) with depictions of a duck and goose; "…rams, lambs, and goats…" (Ezekiel 39:18) accompanied by pictures of a ram and billy goat (small livestock); and "Many bulls have encompassed me…" (Psalms 22:13), showing oxen (larger cattle).
In the possession of the Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, is another slaughterer’s knife, similarly housed in a carved wooden box (042.008.002) bearing the name of the owner: "Asher Zelig son of Rabbi Yosef of blessed memory, slaughterer and examiner." Nevertheless, the set presented here is utterly unique, the only known example of its kind, with no documented equals or similar items; in all likelihood, it was privately commissioned.

Knives: approx. 19.5-37 cm. Boxes: approx. 4X4.5–5X43.5–27 cm. Overall good condition. Rusting to blades.

References and exhibitions:
1. Jews & Medicine. Tel Aviv, Beit Hatfutsot, 1995-1996.
2. Nicht ganz koscher? Not Quite Kosher?. Eisenstadt, Österreichisches Jüdisches Museum, 2000.
3. Koscher & Co. Über Essen und Religion. Berlin, Jüdisches Museum Berlin, 2009.
4. Jodendom: een boek vol verhalen, by Edward van Voolen. Amsterdam, Museumshop De Nieuwe Kerk, 2011, item no. 43.
5. Blood. Reflections on What Unites and Divides Us. London, Jewish Museum, 2015.
6. What's Cooking. Warsaw, Museum of the History of Polish Jews, 2022.
7. Great Jewish Treasures: A Collection of Precious Judaica associated with Torah Leaders, by Moshe Bamberger. New York, Mesorah Publications, 2015, p. 132.
Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, 042.008.001.
The knives and boxes are documented on the Center for Jewish Art (CJA) website, item no. 380391.