The boline knife is a crucial piece of instrument for Wiccan rituals; it’s distinguishable with its crescent-shaped blade and ivory handle. Wicca is a subgroup of the pagan religion, which, unlike the antecedent organization, focuses on the passion for nature, magic achieved by ceremonial rituals, and worshiping deities.
The magical detail of this creed is achieved through the practice of witchcraft, which requires bolline, a.k.a. boline knife to carve an inscription on candles & woods, cropping chords, and ribbons for exclusive ceremonies, chopping herbs, etc. So, the Wiccans hold this knife in an esteemed place.
Another significance of this knife is that it is the only knife that is allowed to be used outside of ritualistic purposes. So outside of the Wicca devotees, people can also buy and collect this knife for its visuals and to collect. Like everything in the present world, boline knives have also been upgraded to suit the taste of modern society with the use of stainless steel and other enhancements. This article is gonna be all about this mysterious tool of Wiccan witchcraft, its characteristics, uses, what to look for in one, and their brief backstory. Let’s start!
Overview of Boline Knives
Wicca religion, also known as neo-paganism, is a practice strictly based on nature and magic. The boline knife, which we are going to talk about, is a crucial part of the magical angle of the religion, aka witchcraft.
To perform the necessary rituals, the witches need three knives, a black-handled knife, a white-handled knife, and the red-handled knife; the black and white-handled knives are respectively athame and boline. Both the knives are like yin and yang, complement each other, and yet completely different. The athame is meant for spiritual ingredients of the ritual and never for physical cutting. Whereas, the boline knife is dedicated only towards the physical cutting, such as leaves, plants, herbalism, branches, chords, etc. And unlike all the other ritual tools, the boline is not forbidden to use outside the sacred space of rituals.
The white-handled blade can be of different shapes, like a moon or straight as an arrow, but the use stays the same. The sickle shape is an ancient design, made as a nod towards the goddess of harvest and her association with the moon as the Wiccans are earth-based.
The construction of the boline knife is full-tang, so it’s exceptionally sturdy. Not only is it durable, but also it’s functional in the tasks it’s intended for. Although the edge retention of the stainless steel is not above the bar, the sharpness is decent and can offer a long-lasting performance if maintained accordingly. For carbon-based materials, oiling the blade after each use is mandatory.
Types of Boline Knife
Boline, the white-handled knife for the witch, is often associated with the crescent-shaped blade only. But in reality, there is no one look set for the purpose, and it can be found in many styles. The central two types are the Kirfane and the traditional Boline knife.
The kirfane is the straight-edged knife that is used the same way as the boline in the ritual space. One of the edges is straight, and the other is blunt. The narrow-bladed knife has a flat ground edge with a pointy tip. It can come in both large and small sizes, small kirfanes being more ideal carving inscriptions. Those can also be worn as a neck knife; large ones resemble kitchen knives.
The bolines have a look similar to garden sickles. The crescent-shaped blade is double-edged and less compact than kirfanes. This shape has a druidic root and is celebrated more within the Wicca traditions.
Features of Wiccan Boline Knife
Size and Weight: The length of a bolin knife ranges from 7 to 10 inches, including all versions. While the modern adaptations of folding bolines come in 7-8 inches in length, they convert to 4-4.5 inches when closed. The weight varies depending on the materials using irons, bone, and horn add on the overall weight notably.
Blade Length & Material: For moon-shaped knives, the blade’s size measures between 4 to 7 inches in length, and for folding bolines, its 4-5 inches. Nowadays, most of the bolines that you’ll find will have stainless steel blades; some will have wrought iron, high-carbon steel, etc. Previously bronze, copper, etc., was used to make the blade. The sickle design is fashioned with dual edges, one serrated and one plain. Single-edged straight blade versions are also available both in fixed and folding blade styles. However, all the designs come with a pointy tip.
Handle: The handles of boline knives are designed in a way to complement the ambiance and elegance of the knife. Bone is the most used material for boline’s handles, horns, wood, etc., are also used in many designs. The fixed blade boline is full tang, and the extra materials are attached to it with pins. And folding bolines have default locking mechanisms to ensure a secure performance; so that blade doesn’t close on you while you’re working.
Sheath: For storing and transporting boline knives, leather sheaths are recommended. They are designed with snap sheaths for easy opening and safe locking. The belt loop accompanying the sheath is ideal for equipping with your belt. However, be warned it will surely rust the blade if it’s kept in the leather sheath for an extended period. Since leather is known to store moisture, it harms metals if they are in contact with it for too long.
FAQ
Q: Is Boline an Athame knife?
A: No, boline and athame are two different knives for very different purposes. The boline is the white-handled knife for rituals, while athame is the black-handed one. Unlike boline, athame can never be used to cut tangible things, as it’s only meant for energy. Boline is also more acknowledged for its all-purpose use outside the dedicated magical practices.
Q: Does a boline must have a curved blade?
A: Not specifically, the significance of the boline knife lies in its practicality and usefulness in the rituals as a white-handled knife. So, you may also come across bolines having only a slight curve at the tip, or downright straight edge (the kirfane), single-edged versions in the market.
Q: Where do I get a boline knife?
A: Boline knives are available in the markets with a broader price range option. You could have your pick from Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and many other online platforms for knives. Antique shops and auctions may provide unique collectibles, products with much attention to detail, or historically significant pieces. Those will be pricey, but otherwise, these sickles are pretty affordable. You can always customize them with the materials of your preference too.
Common Uses of Boline Knife
The primary use of a boline knife is in the Wiccan rituals to perform witchcraft. The sickle-like blade is used to collect and gather herbs for the ceremony, chopping the herbs, cutting chords and strips, basically any cutting need of physical materials.
That is its largest difference with the athame, the black-handled knife. As that is dedicated for spiritual stuff only and never materialistic world, you have the boline for that. Apart from its initial purpose in the ritual, a boline is also permitted for use in daily chores, kitchens, gardens, etc. cutting things is about its only purpose as the white-handled knife.
Now, witchcraft rituals are especially thorough and detailed about their procedures; everything has to fall in its right place for a ritual to be completed. Since Wicca is a nature-oriented practice, herbs and plants are an integral part of the custom.
A traditional boline is usually double-edged; the edge inside the knife is popularly serrated, which is used to reap and gather herbs from the garden, sizing wooden branches to make wands, cutting thick fabrics, etc. Since it is serrated, the friction created by the edge is aptly useful to the users for various applications. The blade facing outwards is plain-edged and rocks a decent sharpness that comes in handy while mincing the herbs, severing the cords for tying up utensils, cutting ribbon strips, etc. As mentioned earlier, a boline is the all-purpose knife dedicated for Wiccan rituals being the white-handled knife. The tip of the boline is pointy, which is used to engrave supplementary writing & designs on candles, wax, wands, etc.
Even if it isn’t needed in a particular session, some witches, not necessarily Wiccans, like to equip it in their waistband for elegance and to manifest a candid druidic look.
Conclusion
The boline knife is mainly attractive to knife collectors because of its unique aesthetics of crescent-shaped blade and its significance in Wiccan witchcraft. The visual of it sparks people’s interest instantly, so it’s something that will complement any sophisticated collection. Due to it being a sacred tool dedicated to rituals, it’s hard to come by these in regular knife stores. This is why we designed this post to be helpful for people who are interested to learn more about this knife and made it as informative as possible. Hopefully, it will be able to satiate your curiosity.