The iron knife has a bone handle with exceptionally fine tenth-century Anglo-Scandinavian ornament. The bone-handled knife was found during excavations in 1976 at 77–79 Castle Street, Canterbury. Large area excavations were undertaken here in advance of redevelopment. The knife was recovered from the upper fill of a robber trench for the west corner of the Roman Theatre. Later excavations to the rear of 77-79 Castle Street followed on from excavations on the frontage of the same site in 1976 and revealed further evidence of late Anglo-Saxon activity in the immediate area, and included a badly disturbed horizon of eight- and ninth-century date associated with a number of rubbish pits, gullies and the remains of a flimsy timber structure. The Saxon levels produced a number of fine bone weaving combs, loom weights and weaving implements; all of which suggest craft-working activities. It is possible the knife may have been associated with these craft activities or it simply represents a lost item. The form of the Canterbury knife, with its stubby blade and broad tang, is unusual and is not closely paralleled amongst Viking-age knives known from Scandinavia or Britain. The ring-chain ornament on the handle is a particularly fine example of a well-known Borre-style motif – a classic form on many of the tenth-century Manx crosses on the Isle of Man and also well-known on sculpture in northern England (Yorkshire). The pattern, therefore, corresponds with this northern style. The ornament on the other side of the knife handle finds its best parallels in sculpture, particularly on Anglo-Scandinavian monuments of northern England. Two ribbon-interlace animals on two tenth-century hogbacks terminate in small ‘snake’ heads, each of which have a slightly amused expression! The presence of free rings within the simple twist is very typical of northern English work of the tenth century, especially in slim linear panels. A northern English origin and a firm dating in the tenth century is indicated for the Canterbury knife on account of its ornamented handle. The lay-out of its ring-chain must make a Cumbrian source for the manufacture of this knife less probable than one in the Kingdom of York. How the knife found its way to Canterbury is unclear. Canterbury survived two waves of Viking attacks on Kent, between 835 and 855 and from 991 to 1012. The form of the Canterbury knife suggests it may have arrived during a Viking raid, or alternatively was acquired by trade.

The knife has a very short, stubby iron blade and is clearly a specialised tool for precision cutting. The knife was therefore mostly likely used as a leather-, wood-, or bone-worker’s knife although it has also been suggested as having possibly been made for a scribe. The knife is reminiscent of a modern penknife.