How to Identify Antique Folding and Pocket Corkscrews: A Buyer's Guide to Types, Makers and Marks

By Thomas Guenther◆Guides◆~14 min read

Antique folding and pocket corkscrews are one of the most rewarding niches in collectible barware. The category covers roughly 250 years of design history, from late 18th century all-metal travelling tools to early 20th century French registered multi-tools, and includes some of the most actively collected objects in the field, particularly the German Belle Époque novelty figural pieces.

The market is also dense with confusion: replated finishes sold as original, replacement worms presented as period, vague Victorian attributions on pieces that need maker-level cataloguing to be properly priced. This guide explains how to evaluate a folding or pocket corkscrew before you buy, with the live inventory sitting on the Antique Folding and Pocket Corkscrews collection page.

I  DefinitionWhat is a folding or pocket corkscrew

A folding or pocket corkscrew is a corkscrew designed to be carried safely on the person rather than left on a sideboard or bar. The category is defined by portability rather than by mechanism. Each piece in this market solves the same fundamental problem (carrying a corkscrew without exposing the worm) in a different way: by folding the worm into the body, by enclosing it inside a hollow handle, by collapsing both worm and handle through a double hinge, or by integrating the corkscrew into a multi-tool with other implements such as blades, shell extractors, button hooks and adjustable wrenches.

The class spans the full history of corkscrew development. Eighteenth century examples are typically all-metal, hand-forged and dual-purpose. Mid-19th century pieces often retain hand-forged Archimedean worms with square cross-sections, set into folding silver-handled bodies. Late-Victorian and Edwardian production introduces standardised mechanisms, named makers, registered designs and the figurative novelty tradition that dominates German output around 1900. Twentieth century French and German production continues the multi-tool format, often with the workaday sensibility of the registered "Déposé" or "DRGM" trade-stamping cultures.

The category is defined by portability rather than by mechanism. That single frame holds 250 years of otherwise unrelated forms together.

II  TypesThe five main folding and pocket types

Five distinct folding and pocket corkscrew types appear most often in serious collections. The summary table sets out the defining features; the prose afterwards expands on each.

1. Folding knife corkscrews

A folding knife with a corkscrew incorporated alongside other tools. The Sheffield sportsman's knife is the late-Victorian and Edwardian English exemplar: jigged stag-effect or genuine stag handle scales, nickel silver bolsters, a direct-pull worm, a spear-point blade often inscribed with a retailer name, and additional tools such as folding button hooks, removable tweezers and dual-bore shell extractors marked for shotgun cartridge gauges. Harrison Brothers & Howson is one of the most documented Sheffield makers in this format.

The mid-19th century silver-handled folding knife sits earlier in the same tradition. Engraved foliate-scrollwork silver scales over a steel frame, a hand-forged Archimedean worm of square cross-section, additional blades for cutting fruit, cheese and foil. These were carried as personal table implements before the standardised waiter's knife (sommelier's friend) emerged in the 1880s. The presence of a forged square-section worm is the diagnostic detail. Machine-cut worms have round cross-sections and post-date the mid-century in standardised commercial production.

2. Roundlet pocket corkscrews

A worm is stored inside a hollow cylindrical handle and protected by a threaded cap. To use, the worm is unscrewed from its socket, removed from the housing and screwed into a transverse socket in the handle to form a T-bar for extraction. The act of assembly is itself part of the design.

Roundlets were typically luxury travel objects in sterling silver or plated brass. The American Sterling silver Art Nouveau roundlet of c.1890 to 1910 is a quintessential example, with applied (not engraved) flowing organic decoration along the cylindrical body. American sterling roundlets are less commonly encountered than British and German examples and have a small but committed collector base.

3. Folding figurative novelty corkscrews

The German "Ladies' Legs" tradition is the dominant figural-novelty format and one of the most actively collected categories in antique corkscrews globally. The two handle scales are shaped as female legs with buttoned boots; deploying the worm produces a crossed-legs pose. Production was concentrated in Solingen, Germany, with the patented design (German patent 21718) issued to Steinfeld & Reimer in January 1894. The patent reference is canonical and is documented in the standard collector literature.

Collectors distinguish numerous variants by stocking colour (striped, solid, two-colour), stocking length (full or half), boot or high-heel form and the use of one or two celluloid colours. A documented Steinfeld & Reimer half-stocking variant in striped blue and white celluloid with flesh-coloured upper thigh sections is more highly valued than a single-colour late commercial example, all else equal. Ernst Lesser is another documented Solingen maker producing related figural pocket corkscrews including folding "Shoes" designs.

4. Double folders and pre-industrial travelling corkscrews

Eighteenth century travelling corkscrews use a double-hinge mechanism that collapses both the handle and the worm, reducing the entire object to a compact stick form. Surviving examples are typically all-metal, hand-forged and combine the corkscrew with a secondary travelling function such as a pipe tamper. Marks are uncommon on pieces from this period, and an unmarked 18th century double folder is correctly described as such, with no regional or maker claim beyond what physical evidence supports. Comparable examples have appeared at major London auction sales.

5. Folding bow-frame multi-tools

A forged steel bow frame functions as both protective housing and grip. Tools fan out from a single pivot inside the bow. Eight-tool examples are documented and were produced across Central Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, often without maker marks. Original nickel plating, all original tools present and an unrestored frame are the principal value factors.

Replated and incomplete examples are common. Original examples are not.

A sixth format is worth recognising even when not strictly a "folding" tool: French registered multi-tools such as Le Couteau Clé "MULTIPLE" Déposé extend the multi-tool tradition into 20th century French commercial production by integrating the corkscrew, blades and a spike into the body of an adjustable spanner. "Déposé" is the French equivalent of the British "Rd." mark and the German "DRGM" mark.

III  AuthenticationHow to identify a genuine antique folding or pocket corkscrew

Identification rests on four converging signals. None alone is conclusive. The combination is what matters. The wider corkscrew identification framework sits in the antique corkscrew identification guide; the broader reading method for any antique sits in how to read an antique.

Material

The material has to suit the period and the maker.

• Hand-forged steel with no secondary surface (no plating, no applied silver) is consistent with 18th century pre-industrial production.
• Engraved silver handles with hand-forged square-section Archimedean worms are consistent with mid-19th century production.
• Sterling silver bodies with applied (not engraved) decoration in the Art Nouveau idiom indicate American or European silversmithing of c.1890 to 1910.
• Jigged stag-effect synthetic handles with nickel silver bolsters indicate late-Victorian or Edwardian Sheffield commercial production. Genuine stag is heavier, denser and shows natural variation; "stag-effect" is a synthetic imitation, not a defect.
• Striped or two-colour celluloid scales mounted to nickel-plated steel frames with cast nickel boots indicate German Solingen export production of the 1890s and 1900s.
• Original nickel plating with wear revealing underlying steel indicates pre-chrome era production. Chrome plating became standard in the 1920s and 1930s. On a piece offered as pre-WWI, chrome is an immediate red flag.

Surface

Original surfaces are valued. Replated, repolished and refinished pieces lose much of their collector appeal even when they look superficially fresher.

• Honest silver toning on engraved handles, not high polish.
• Nickel wear at high-contact areas, not uniform brightness.
• Hairline cracks in celluloid at rivet points are normal age behaviour and do not constitute structural damage. Cracking that runs across the scale and undermines structural integrity is a different category (see callout above).
• Even oxidation and patina on 18th and early 19th century iron and steel pieces, not bright clean metal.
• Sterling silver should show light surface wear and natural age toning, not the uniform brightness of recent polishing.

Marks and stamps

Look in the places makers actually marked their work.

• "Harrison Brothers & Howson" on Sheffield sportsman's knives, often with retailer inscriptions on the blade such as "John Odell / Farmers Friend".
• "Sheffield 12" and "Sheffield 16" on shotgun cartridge shell extractors, indicating gauge.
• Sterling silver hallmarks on the cap or body of roundlet corkscrews. American sterling silver of this period is typically marked ".925" or "STERLING".
• "DÉPOSÉ" on French registered multi-tools, often with a registered trade name such as "MULTIPLE".
• "DRGM" or "DRP" on German registered designs (Deutsches Reichs-Gebrauchsmuster / Deutsches Reichs-Patent).
• Patent numbers on Ladies' Legs and other novelty German corkscrews. German patent 21718 issued to Steinfeld & Reimer in January 1894 is the canonical reference for the patented Ladies' Legs design.
• Some genuine 18th century pieces are unmarked. An unmarked 18th century double folder is correctly described as such, with no regional or maker claim beyond what physical evidence supports.

Mechanism

A genuine period mechanism moves as designed.

• Hinges should pivot with light resistance and no slack.
• Worms should be straight with a defined point. Bent, blunted or visibly modern worms are structural faults.
• Roundlet caps should thread cleanly without binding or stripping.
• Multi-tool stacks should deploy without forcing.
• Replacement worms, replacement blades, replacement scales and married-up parts are common in this market and are usually visible to a careful eye when the surfaces, fits and ages of components are compared.

IV  MakersThe makers most commonly encountered in serious collections

Harrison Brothers & Howson (Sheffield, England, c.1890 to 1910)

A long-established Sheffield cutlery manufacturer producing sportsman's knives, advertising-blade pocket knives and table cutlery. Late-Victorian and Edwardian Sheffield knives carry quality indicators that include nickel silver bolsters, jigged stag-effect or genuine stag scales, integrated tool stacks (corkscrew, button hook, tweezers, shell extractors) and pinned handle construction. Retailer inscriptions on advertising blades ("John Odell / Farmers Friend" being one example) add a layer of commercial trade history that is separately collected.

Steinfeld & Reimer (Solingen, Germany, late 19th century)

Holders of German patent 21718 (January 1894) for the Ladies' Legs novelty folding corkscrew design. The patent is referenced in the standard corkscrew collector literature and provides a firm post-quem date. Steinfeld & Reimer output ranges across stocking colours, lengths, boot forms and celluloid construction techniques. The half-stocking variant with flesh-coloured upper thigh sections is a documented sub-type that collectors specifically distinguish.

Ernst Lesser (Solingen, Germany, late 19th into early 20th century)

Producer of figural novelty pocket corkscrews including folding "Shoes" designs in the same broad export tradition as the Ladies' Legs type. Ernst Lesser pieces share the Solingen quality signals (cast nickel detailing, original celluloid, nickel-plated steel frames) but differ in figural subject and are less commonly encountered in the market.

Le Couteau Clé "MULTIPLE" Déposé (France, early to mid 20th century)

A registered French commercial multi-tool combining a corkscrew, blades and a spike with an adjustable spanner frame. "Déposé" confirms a registered design. The MULTIPLE name and the wrench frame distinguish this from gentleman's accessory pocket corkscrews and place it in a different social register: a tradesperson's pocket tool rather than a luxury object.

Unattributed Solingen, bow-frame and 18th century European production

Many Belle Époque novelty corkscrews are unmarked or carry only retailer or export marks; they are correctly described as Solingen production where form, materials and finish support the placement, without specific maker attribution beyond what evidence allows. The folding bow corkscrew multi-tool is associated with German and Swiss manufacture, though unmarked examples are found across Central Europe; the absence of a maker's mark on a piece of this type is consistent with the trade. Eighteenth century travelling corkscrews are typically unmarked, and an unmarked 18th century example is correctly placed in the period on physical evidence rather than mark.

V  Red flagsCommon warning signs when evaluating a piece

If you are evaluating an antique folding or pocket corkscrew before purchase, treat the following as warning signs.

• The seller cannot describe the material precisely. "Antique pocket corkscrew" without specification of frame material, scale material or worm type on a piece priced at the named-maker tier is a problem.
• The piece is attributed to a major maker (Harrison Brothers & Howson, Steinfeld & Reimer, Ernst Lesser) with no maker mark visible and no reference to documented type literature.
• The brass is uniformly bright, the nickel plating is uniformly bright, or the celluloid is pristine on a piece dated before 1915. These are signs of restoration, not preservation.
• The worm is bent, blunted or visibly modern.
• A multi-tool is described as Sheffield or Solingen production but is missing tools that would normally be present (shell extractors, button hooks, tweezers).
• A famous patent or named design is used (Ladies' Legs Steinfeld & Reimer, MULTIPLE Déposé) but the price is significantly below the established market range. Genuine examples have price floors set by international collector demand.
• The seller will not say whether the piece is offered as serviceable or display-only.

VI  FAQFrequently asked questions

VII  ClosingBrowse the folding and pocket corkscrew collection

Specialist examples currently available, including a Harrison Brothers & Howson Sheffield sportsman's knife, a Sterling silver Art Nouveau roundlet, a German Steinfeld & Reimer Ladies' Legs corkscrew, an 18th century double folder with pipe tamper, a forged-steel folding bow corkscrew with eight integrated tools, and Le Couteau Clé "MULTIPLE" Déposé. The mechanical and figural counterparts to portable production sit in antique mechanical corkscrews and antique figural corkscrews; the same authentication framework applies across all three silos.