Stan Shaw is virtually the last of the 'little mesters' - the independent Sheffield craftsmen who were responsible for the citys legendary reputation in cutlery. For over fifty years he has been handcrafting fine Sheffield knives: first at some of the most famous firms in the industry, such as Ibbersons, & then in his own workshop.

Since the 1980s, while the industry has collapsed around him he has been waging a lonely but successful rear guard action against invasion of cheap, foreign products. One of the most skilled & dedicated cutlers of any era, Stan Shaw is unique. His mastery of every stage of the knife making process (a rarity even in the industry's golden age) allows him to produce beautiful hand-made pocket-knives that mark him out as a true Master Cutler & the last custodian of the Sheffield cutler's art.

Stan began his career at the age of 14 as a traditional apprentice, later opening his own workshop in Sheffield from which he continues to produce handmade knives. Many of the tools and techniques he deploys hark back to the Victorian knifemaking era in Sheffield.

During a Royal visit to Sheffield in 2000, the Duke of Kent presented Mr Stan Shaw with the gift of a coin after receiving a traditional Sheffield pocket knife.

The presentation conformed to a Sheffield tradition in which the gift of the knife must be met with the payment, by the recipient, of the smallest denomination coin in his or her possession. This is to ensure that the gift of a knife does not sever an established friendship, as the exchange has been transformed into a nominal commercial transaction.

The Duke of Kent is one of several members of the Royal Family who own one of Mr Shaw's knives. The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Duke of York and Princess Margaret all own his special, timeless and exlusive pieces.

Pictures:
Top ... The man himself at work in his workshop during September 2002. Photo by Mr Jenkinson, with thanks.
Middle ... Stan Shaw's Sheffield workshop.
Bottom ... Stan Shaw meeting the Duke of Kent in 2000.

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