Prinsloo, Theuns
Before he became a full-time knifemaker, he was a headmaster of a school for students with learning disabilities. He seriously committed to making his first knife after his 16 year old son passed away in 1994. He became a full-time maker in 1996 and is a Knife Guild of South Africa member. Theuns never makes the same knife twice. Some knives may use the same materials or have a shape that is somewhat similar, but what separates a Theuns Prinsloo knife is in the details. I heard that when Michelangelo was painting the Sistine Chapel there were places he painted that would never be seen by human eyes, but Michelangelo painted them anyway because God would see them. The next time you pick up one of Theuns Prinsloo’s folding knives, open it. Look inside the recess where the blade seats and prepare to be amazed. Theuns painstakingly makes an etching on the inside each of the backspacers that usually depicts an African bushman scene with the backdrop being the mountain that is visible from his backyard.