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The Shah Jahan dagger sold for $3,375,000 at Christie’s in New York on June 19, 2019. It is the highest documented auction result among the knives and daggers in this guide. Christie’s published sale report records the result.
The most expensive knives range from historic jade-hilted daggers to gem-set art knives, engraved folders, and a chef’s knife owned by Anthony Bourdain. Compare their prices below, then explore the makers, materials, and history behind each piece.
The table lists physical knives from highest to lowest published price. The digital Blue Gem Karambit appears separately at the end.
| Knife | Price (USD) | Price basis | Notable features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shah Jahan Kard Dagger | $3,375,000 | Auction result, 2019 | Jade hilt, gold decoration, royal provenance |
| Buster Warenski — Gem of the Orient | $2,100,000 | Reported price | Jade, 18-karat gold, emeralds, and diamonds |
| Gem-Set Jade-Hilted Dagger and Mounts | ≈ $1,200,000 | Historical published price | Gem-set nephrite hilt and matching mounts |
| Ottoman Gold-and-Turquoise-Hilted Knife | $582,000 | Historical published price | Turquoise panels and openwork gold decoration |
| Buster Warenski — King Tut Dagger | $500,000 | Asking price, 2022 | Gold dagger and scabbard; modern reproduction |
| Anthony Bourdain’s Bob Kramer Chef’s Knife | $231,250 | Auction total with buyer’s premium, 2019 | A 10-inch knife from Bourdain’s collection |
| S.R. Johnson — Full-Integral Big Bear | $115,000 | Asking price | Integral construction, pearl, and Barry Lee Hands engraving |
| Bob Loveless — Stag Lawndale Sub-Hilt | $85,000 | Asking price | Stag handle, brass hilts, and early Loveless provenance |
| S.R. Johnson — Ultimate SRJ Dagger | $75,000 | Asking price | Pearl handles, multicolor gold work, and diamonds |
| Alex Gev — “Pirates” Art Folder | $75,000 | Asking price | Sculptural pirate-themed handle engraving |
| Bob Kramer — Queen Bee | $65,000 | Maker’s listed price | Damascus blade and 24-karat gold bee engraving |
| Wolfgang Loerchner — Folding Dagger | $42,000 | Asking price | Alex Gev engraving with 18-karat gold satyrs |
| Michael Walker — D-Lock Folder | $39,550 | Listed price | 22-karat gold inlays and mokume-gane |
| Michael Walker — Bladelock | $38,500 | Asking price | Damasteel construction with gold and silver inlays |
| Tom Overeynder — Double Pocket Locket | $38,000 | Asking price | Automatic mechanism and concealed engraved surfaces |
| Alex Gev — Automatic Art Folder | $38,000 | Listed price | Knife and engraving by the same maker |
| Ron Lake / Wolfe Loerchner — Tail-Lock Art Folder | $33,500 | Listed price | Tail-lock design with decorative metalwork |
| Alexis Lecocq — Empire Back-Lock | $29,995 | Asking price | Egyptian-themed C.J. Cai engraving and gold inlays |
| D.B. Fraley — Samurai Flipper | $24,000 | Listed price | Figurative samurai handle engraving |
| Corrado Moro — Tourbillon Folder | $10,000 | Asking price | RWL34 blade, pearl, and a mechanism viewing window |
| Blue Gem Karambit — digital skin | ≈ $1,400,000 | Reported offer, 2021 | Counter-Strike item; separate from the physical knives above |
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Prices are in U.S. dollars and reflect auction results, published figures, or asking prices recorded when this article was researched. Asking prices may differ from final sale amounts; older listings may no longer display their original price.
The highest documented result here belongs to the dagger family. These short blades are considered alongside knives, while longer swords fall outside this comparison. Royal ownership, surviving fittings, and an identifiable history are central to the examples below.
Christie’s catalogues the North Indian hilt to 1620–1630. The dagger is 11⅝ inches (29.7 cm) overall, with a carved jade hilt and a watered-steel blade bearing gold decoration and an inscription associated with Shah Jahan. The hilt terminates in an unusual European-style head whose precise identity remains debated. Christie’s lot catalogue documents the construction, inscription, and provenance.
Christie’s described the result as a record for an Indian jade object and for an object with Shah Jahan provenance.
The published price was approximately $1.2 million. This is a different object from the Shah Jahan kard. Christie’s catalogue dates its North Indian or Deccan dagger and fittings to about 1700–1750, with an older scabbard lining dated around 1650. It has an X-shaped nephrite hilt, gem-set gold decoration, and a curved double-edged blade. Overall length is 15⅜ inches (39 cm).
The recorded ownership begins with Robert Clive or his son Edward and continues through the Powis family. The surviving mounts and older textile lining make this a useful example of an elaborate court dagger preserved as an ensemble.
The published price was $582,000. The Christie’s entry for this sixteenth-century Ottoman knife describes a watered-steel blade and a hilt assembled with turquoise panels and openwork gold decoration. Small gold birds conceal fixing pins, bringing structural details into the ornament. The closely fitted stones and pierced gold frame make the hilt as important to its design as the blade.
Christie’s discusses a possible ceremonial purpose, without establishing it conclusively. The watered blade belongs to the historical tradition discussed in our wootz steel guide.
Modern collector knives offer a different comparison from royal antiques: the maker, engraver, construction, and decorative materials identify the individual work. At Noblie Custom Knives, these are the details we document alongside photographs of a piece.
Gem of the Orient is the second knife in Buster Warenski’s Legacy series. In Warenski’s own account, he describes a forest-green jade handle, 18-karat gold construction and decoration, 153 emeralds totaling 10 carats, and nine diamonds totaling 5 carats. Those details establish the scale of the goldsmithing and stone-setting involved.
With a reported price of $2.1 million, Gem of the Orient sits at the upper end of the modern art-knife market. Its jade, gold filigree, and extensive stone-setting make it one of the most elaborate pieces in Warenski’s Legacy series.
This is Warenski’s modern reproduction, not an original object from Tutankhamun’s tomb. Commissioned by Phil Lobred in 1982 and completed in 1987, it became the first Legacy knife. A BLADE report published in August 2022 quoted a $500,000 asking price and described more than 32 ounces of gold in the dagger and sheath.
The project required a gold blade, decorative enameling, granulation, and a matching gold scabbard. Its construction places it firmly in the field of historical reproduction and goldsmithing, rather than ordinary cutting tools. For custom knife makers, it is also a reference in combining several goldworking techniques within a single reproduction.
Knife Treasures’ listing for stock 1064 publishes a $115,000 asking price. It identifies an 8½-inch blade, 14¼-inch overall length, full-integral construction, mother-of-pearl handle material, and engraving by Barry Lee Hands. The listing uses the blade-steel description “CPM 154-CM Full Integral.”
The large fixed-blade knife combines an integral sub-hilt form with extensive gold decoration and diamond setting. The contrast between the pearl scales, polished metal, and sculpted gold is central to the finished work.
The listing for the Ultimate SRJ Dagger, stock 1363, publishes $75,000. Its specifications give a 7¼-inch blade and an overall length of 11 13/16 inches, with pearl handles and engraving by Barry Lee Hands. The decoration includes several gold colors, raised gold work, and diamonds.
The catalogue associates the piece with Arts in Metal 2014 in Stresa. Hands’s decoration uses yellow, green, and rose gold against the pearl and steel, including raised gold work on the quillons. The advertised $75,000 reflects this particular maker–engraver collaboration.
This Bob Loveless knife is documented in a sold gallery listing. The description records a 9 5/16-inch blade, stag handle, brass hilts, colored spacers, an aluminum pommel, and a leather sheath. The blade steel is listed as unknown.
The knife was offered at $85,000. For an early Loveless, the maker’s markings, original fittings, sheath, and documented ownership help explain its collector appeal.
Chef’s knives need their own comparison. The value of a knife associated with a famous owner cannot be attributed to blade performance alone. These two examples from Bob Kramer distinguish an auction result from a maker’s published price.
iGavel’s original auction record, lot 5555226, shows a $185,000 winning bid plus a $46,250 buyer’s premium, for a total of $231,250. The sale closed on October 30, 2019. It is a documented six-figure chef’s-knife sale, rather than an estimated value.
The lot describes a custom Bob Kramer knife with a 10-inch blade, a black case, and a certificate issued to Anthony Bourdain. His ownership is part of the auction object’s identity, so the result is not a routine price benchmark for another Kramer knife of similar size.
Kramer’s Queen Bee product page publishes a $65,000 price for this 10-inch chef’s knife. The maker describes eight hand-engraved 24-karat gold bees, a Damascus puzzle-weld flower pattern made with 1080 and 15N20, and engraving by Tom Ferry. The handle is stainless steel, and the display stand is ebony.
The bees and floral pattern carry the theme across both engraving and blade construction. Kramer advises keeping the blade clean and dry to prevent surface corrosion.
High-end pocket knives combine blade fit and lock design with decorative work in a small format. In hand-engraved knives, the maker and engraver may be different people, so both attributions matter. A recognizable maker name alone does not establish a particular folder’s construction, price, or sales history.
The examples below range from $10,000 to $75,000 and show how maker–engraver collaborations, unusual mechanisms, and precious-metal work shape the price of an individual folder.
The pirate-themed art folder featured here was listed at $75,000. Its sculptural handle engraving brings ship scenes and figures into the small surface area of a folding knife.
For related work, Alex Gev’s Pirates portfolio entry documents engraving on a Joe Kious knife, including sculpted silver figures, gold and silver ship details, and scenes inside the handle pockets.
The gallery record for this folding dagger identifies Wolfgang “Wolfe” Loerchner as the knife maker and Alex Gev as the engraver. It describes an overall length of 9¼ inches and 18-karat gold engraving with satyr imagery. The distinctive feature is the collaboration between the blade and frame design and the sculptural decoration.
The knife was listed at $42,000.
The D-Lock listing identifies this as a third-generation example associated with AKI 2005. It describes titanium handles, stainless Damascus, 22-karat gold inlays, and shakudō-and-silver mokume-gane. Overall length is 6¾ inches.
Previously listed at $39,550, this D-Lock is distinct from the Bladelock shown below.
The archived listing identifies Tom Overeynder’s automatic folder with engraving by Alex Gev. Its imagery depicts the legendary Yu with dragons associated with controlling water. The pocket-locket format provides additional concealed surfaces for the engraving, rather than treating the outer handle as the only decorated area.
The published asking price was $38,000.
The gallery archive for this AKI 2022 automatic credits Alex Gev with both the knife and engraving. Combining the mechanism and sculptural decoration within one maker’s design distinguishes it from the collaborations elsewhere in this section.
The knife was listed at $38,000.
This individual Bladelock listing publishes $38,500. It describes heat-treated Damasteel in the blade, handles, and lock bar, with titanium hardware, a large 22-karat gold inlay, and additional gold and silver inlays. Here, patterned steel is part of the handle and locking assembly as well as the cutting blade.
The relevant Walker patent is U.S. Patent 4,979,301, which describes a locking lever mounted in a slot in the blade. This arrangement is part of the knife’s mechanical identity, separate from the precious-metal decoration. The $38,500 is a listing price.
This collaboration pairs Ron Lake’s tail-lock folder design with decorative work attributed to Wolfe Loerchner. The previously listed price was $33,500.
A seller-supplied marketplace description identifies the Empire back-lock with C.J. Cai’s Egyptian-themed engraving. It lists an RWL34 blade, an AISI 416 handle, four 22-karat yellow-gold inlays on each side, and an overall length of 8½ inches.
The knife was offered at $29,995. Its RWL34 blade, gold inlays, and Egyptian-themed engraving combine practical blade construction with decorative metalwork.
D.B. Fraley’s Samurai flipper features figurative handle engraving based on an armored samurai. The knife was listed at $24,000.
The Tourbillon catalogue entry describes a viewing window inspired by fine watches, with AISI 416 stainless steel, black-lip pearl, carbon fiber, and an RWL34 blade. Blade length is about 3.35 inches (85 mm), with an overall length of about 7.87 inches (200 mm).
Its watch-inspired window exposes part of the knife mechanism rather than a working clock tourbillon. The published asking price was $10,000.
The Factory New Karambit | Case Hardened, pattern 387, known as a Blue Gem, belongs to Counter-Strike’s digital-skin market. It is a virtual item, shown separately from the physical knives in the table.
The widely reported figure for this Blue Gem is approximately $1.4 million. Dexerto’s reporting describes a €1.2 million offer rejected in 2021, rather than a completed sale.
This distinction keeps digital scarcity separate from the material construction and provenance used to evaluate historical dagger types and modern art knives. Pattern rarity, private offers, and actual completed transactions are different kinds of information.
The examples above show why price alone is a poor guide to cutting performance. A royal dagger, a gold-bladed reproduction, and a working chef’s knife are different objects. To compare knives by price, first separate historical value, maker attribution, construction, and decorative work.
A credible ownership history is supported by records tied to the actual object: a maker’s invoice, correspondence, exhibition catalogue, auction lot, or identifiable period photograph. Names without documentation are weaker evidence. Condition matters too, particularly when polishing, replacement fittings, or re-engraving change the surfaces that help identify a piece.
For presentation daggers, inspect the blade, guard, hilt, scabbard, and mountings as a set. A decorative fitting added later should not automatically inherit the provenance of the blade.
Hand engraving can involve cutting away a background, modeling relief, preparing inlay cavities, setting precious metal, and adding fine shading. Relief depth, control of the outlines, and the fit of the inlays are useful details to inspect in close-up photographs. A gold inlay is not the same construction as gold plating.
The same distinction applies to mosaic Damascus knives: the visible blade pattern is part of the metalwork. Individual mosaic Damascus patterns can require different billet arrangements and forging sequences; layer count alone does not explain the finished knife’s value.
Powder-metallurgy steels such as BÖHLER M398 MICROCLEAN describe the blade material and its manufacturing route, not a guaranteed place in the luxury market. A modern steel’s cutting properties should be evaluated separately from goldwork or historical provenance. Our knife steel chart compares those practical blade properties.
Handle materials need equally specific descriptions. Mother-of-pearl, jade, and gold appear in documented examples here. Listings using mammoth materials or crystallized titanium should identify the actual material and construction rather than relying on “rare” or “exotic.” Their presence alone does not establish quality, labor time, or future resale value.
This video provides a closer view of the art-knife format and decorative work. Look for the relationship between the blade shape, handle sculpture, and the way each maker presents the finished knife.
Video credit: MelissaBackwoods.
Not all of them. A chef’s knife may be designed to cut, while an antique dagger or a gold-bladed reproduction requires a different approach. Gem settings, engraving, and delicate handle materials can also affect appropriate handling. Evaluate the individual knife rather than assuming that every expensive piece is either an everyday tool or purely decorative. Our knife collecting guide discusses the distinction between collecting and use.
Materials do not set value independently of the object. Gold and gemstones can contribute to cost, but their purity, quality, setting, and condition need documentation. A technically demanding Damascus blade or a well-executed pearl handle may matter to a collector without producing a six-figure price. The named maker, original work, and credible comparison with other individual pieces remain essential.
Ask for clear photographs of signatures, logos, both blade faces, the lock or tang, fittings, and any accompanying sheath or case. Match these to a maker’s records or a documented catalogue entry. A certificate is useful only when it can be tied to the knife and its issuer; appearance and a convincing story are not substitutes for that check.
For a substantial purchase, seek an independent specialist familiar with that maker or historical category. Condition, restoration, replacement parts, and the chain of ownership should be recorded before payment. Use the custom knife price guide for general budget context, not as an authentication or appraisal document.
An exceptional knife is not a guaranteed appreciating asset. A published asking price does not establish what another buyer will pay, and resale proceeds can be reduced by commissions, insurance, shipping, or restoration costs. Buy collectible knives for reasons you can justify without assuming a future profit. The distinction between an advertised value and a realizable sale price is especially important in this market.
Limit handling of polished metal, keep the object supported, and use storage appropriate to all of its materials. The Canadian Conservation Institute’s metal-care guidance warns that fingerprints can stain metal and that polishing removes original surface material. Historic patina should not automatically be polished away.
For a modern knife, follow the maker’s instructions on lubrication and corrosion protection. Renaissance Wax is not a blanket treatment for every gemstone, enamel, adhesive, or handle finish. Avoid sharpening, disassembly, abrasive cleaning, or applying oil across a mixed-material art knife without appropriate guidance. An antique or damaged piece belongs with a qualified conservator.
Royal provenance, celebrated makers, elaborate engraving, and unusual construction all contribute to the prices in this guide. Modern fixed blades and folders can be exceptional examples of pattern-welded steel, engraving, and mechanical design without holding a price record.
For further browsing, see our collectors knives category. For realistic commissioning and purchase budgets below the exceptional examples above, use the Custom Knife Price List.
How nicely written! The most expensive knife in the world: Top 2025 luxury knives of 25.
Excellent article!
Very informative. These knives are just so captivating.
I own two custom knives I would like to sell. Where can i do this?
Selling custom knives involves selecting appropriate platforms that cater to specialized interests. Options include online marketplaces such as eBay or Etsy, dedicated knife forums, and social media groups. Additionally, attending knife shows or contacting local knife shops can provide opportunities to sell custom knives directly to collectors and enthusiasts.
Excellent
Super
The world of luxury knives is truly fascinating, and your roundup of the most expensive knives in the world puts the spotlight on the extraordinary craftsmanship behind these pieces. It’s amazing to see how materials, history, and artistry combine to create such valuable and coveted works of art. This post has added a few dream pieces to my virtual collection!
Absolutely fascinating to see the craftsmanship and artistry that goes into creating these high-end knives! The materials, history, and detail are truly a testament to the knife-making art. While I’d love to own one of these masterpieces, my budget might force me to just admire from afar. Out of curiosity, does anyone here own a knife in this price range? How does it compare in terms of performance to more ‘average-priced’ knives?
In fact, the most expensive knife is the blue gem karambit with a price of 1.5 million dollars.