KNIFE SET L'ECLAIR LAGUIOLE FRANCE SOMMELIER CORKSCREW

Legends, rumours and traditions... 

The cross on the handle of your LAGUIOLE knife. 

The shepherd's cross appeared relatively recently, towards the end of the 19th Century. Every year in May, the vast basaltic plateau of France's Aubrac region, home to the town of Laguiole, is the scene of passing herds of cattle on the Sunday closest to May 20, the feast day of Saint Géraud. In times gone by, the expedition was made on foot, and lasted several days.

In this region, where Catholicism runs deep, travelling shepherds would use their knife to mark a cross on their loaf of bread, which then served as a shrine for prayer. This explains why you will only find the cross on one side of the handle. In fact, it mostly features on older models.

The symbol represented on the spring is a bee, the emblem of Laguiole knives and the LAGUIOLE brand.

Local legend has it that the symbol is Napoleon I's imperial mark, offered to Laguiole in recognition of the bravery of its men in times of war. In cutler terms, it represents the metal protuberance at the end of the knife's spring. On our famous Laguiole knife, the protuberance is a bee.

Whilst the bee is still used in reference to old Laguiole models dating back 100 to 150 years, it is not necessarily the only visible motif on the spring; a human face, a four-leaf clover, a "Saint Jacques" scallop shell - in reference to the Saint Jacques path that passes through the Aubrac region, and a highly stylized smooth bee are other possibilities.