Athame...

[T'a Nuk]

Probably silly question and I am prepared for conflicting opinions but... Does the blade of an athame need to be made of metal? I have crafted some beautiful bison bone, antler and river stone blades that I intend to fashion into athames using only natural and unrefined elements. I have been told that the vibratory qualities in metals such as copper, bronze, and steel are the only materials suitable. In my heart I disagree. What did the ancients use before metallurgy? Any thoughts?

[corvidus]

I don't even use an athame most the time.

And I've always wanted one made of bone.

[mikezmac]

If say no. Bone I think would make an excellent athame

[T'a Nuk]

I don't use one either, but they are traditional in many practices and offer an opportunity to create something beautiful and useful. I think bone lends itself well. Bison and elk have very pretty color gradations and are plentiful. Many people I know here hunt and I have lots of deer and elk bone and antler. Bison is a little tougher but I have several native friends who gather and trade like I do. I cannot see why they would be any less effective than the 'conductive' metals.

[Firebird]

I just obtained a beautiful bone blade when I visited the Grand Canyon the woman said it was bison, but I'm a little skeptical. One of my favorite was an obsidian stone attached to an antler hilt, used that for a long time untill one day I broke the tip . My very first athame I made out of an old iron metal file. I still use that one frequently even though I finally broke out the bigger bucks and purchased a really nice one from a smith at the Ren Faire.
So no...I feel it could be made from anything...I recently even saw some made of wood. Some people feel iron and steel chase off the faye, so bone or stone would be great alternatives. Course there is always your finger!
Bb, Firebird

[SpiritTalker]

As long as it cuts astral energy, it does the job. Obsidian, stone, bone, etc.

[TwilightDancer]

Course there is always your finger!

I've tried Athames in the past but I've always come back to this. It feels more natural for me to use my finger.

[T'a Nuk]

My finger works just fine as well. What makes you skeptical about your bison blade? Funny thing about bison is that it is usually taken from femur bone and has a 'plastic' feel to it, but it does come in nice colors, from an alabaster white through silver gray, to almost black, if it has been exposed to cold winters. My interest is in the crafting, and I find some of the most elegant materials in nature. I am currently doing alot of work with stones from the Southfork River which is glacier fed and the source of beautiful blade material. I also use the smaller ones to make custom rune sets. I feel alot of energy in these stones.

[Raven At Heart]

Athames work best as steel because it conducts spiritual energy as well as it does electricity.

[Atalanta]

I love the idea of bone, personally. I think they would be lovely.

[T'a Nuk]

Once I have finished the two I am making, I will post pics.

[Katrinkah]

Your heart is always right

[SnowCat]

I use my finger. I have yet to misplace it, because it's attached. I'm one of those can't find the car keys that are in my hand people.

I agree with Raven, that steel is an excellent conductor of electricity, but so is the body. Much of our physical substance is electrolytes. We can't live without the physical ability to conduct electricity.

Snow

[Firebird]

What makes you skeptical about your bison blade?

It was one of those little roadside stands. The lady behind the booth was nice enough and she pointed out the authenticity tag on the blade when I was looking at it, but when I unwrapped the piece when I got back to the motel the tag was gone. She said that it was made by Navajo and I was in a portion of their rez. as we made our way to the Grand Canyon. http://everythingunderthemoon.net/forum ... 33086.html
(I was sort of looking for the made-in-china tag) I guess I was upset she removed the tag.... I still really like it though. Do you know if there is a way to distinguish it from say, cow?
Thanks, Firebird

[SnowCat]

Most bison are bison/cow hybrids, so it's probably a blend of both anyway. I know there's a genetically pure bison herd somewhere, it might be here in Colorado. If it was made in China, it might have some type of Asian buffalo background.

Snow