The terms paper knife and letter opener are often used interchangeably to refer to a

knife A knife ( : knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evidenced ...

-like desktop tool. In truth, they are actually for different functions and were in use at different times. Paper knives are used for cutting open the pages of hand-produced books where the folding of printed sheets creates some closed edges that require severing of the paper before reading. Letter openers "evolved" from paper knives into longer, blunter blades for the sole purpose of opening envelopes. Paper knives are no longer in common use, except perhaps by antiques enthusiasts. An

electric version ''Electric Version'' is the second studio album by Canadian indie rock group The New Pornographers. It was released on Matador Records and Mint Records on May 6, 2003. ''Electric Version'' placed at number seven in ''The Village Voice''s Pazz & ...

of a letter opener is also available, which uses

motors An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power g ...

to slide the envelopes across a

blade A blade is the portion of a tool, weapon, or machine with an edge that is designed to puncture, chop, slice or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they are to be used on. Historic ...

, and is also able to handle increased numbers of envelopes, but the blade can slice into the contents of the envelope and damage them. Letter openers may be designed from

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

s, such as

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

, silver, or

pewter Pewter () is a malleable metal alloy consisting of tin (85–99%), antimony (approximately 5–10%), copper (2%), bismuth, and sometimes silver. Copper and antimony (and in antiquity lead) act as hardeners, but lead may be used in lower grades of ...

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals is ...

, or a combination of materials. Often the style of the

handle A handle is a part of, or attachment to, an object that allows it to be grasped and manipulated by hand. The design of each type of handle involves substantial ergonomic issues, even where these are dealt with intuitively or by following tra ...

is embellished or styled more so than the blade. Some modern openers have a retractable

razor blade A razor is a bladed tool primarily used in the removal of body hair through the act of shaving. Kinds of razors include straight razors, safety razors, disposable razors, and electric razors. While the razor has been in existence since before ...

inside a plastic handle.

Patrick Henry's letter opener

American politician and

Founding Father The following list of national founding figures is a record, by country, of people who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e. ...

Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736June 6, 1799) was an American attorney, planter, politician and orator known for declaring to the Second Virginia Convention (1775): " Give me liberty, or give me death!" A Founding Father, he served as the first an ...

is famous for making a speech before the

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

House of Burgesses The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been established ...

on March 23, 1775, stating the famous words " Give me Liberty, or give me Death!" After this, he pretended to plunge a letter opener into his chest.

Weapon in attempted assassination

The strength of letter openers was proven on September 20, 1958.

Izola Curry Izola Curry ( Ware; June 14, 1916 – March 7, 2015) was an African-American woman who attempted to assassinate the civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. She stabbed King with a letter opener at a Harlem book signing on September 20, 1958, ...

stabbed

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

in the chest with a letter opener, at a book-signing in a

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

department store. Correctly noting that the opener entered above King's heart (later proven to be within centimeters of his aorta), NYPD police officers Al Howard and Phil Romano took King in his chair down to an ambulance that took King to

Harlem Hospital Harlem Hospital Center, branded as NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem, is a 272-bed, public teaching hospital affiliated with Columbia University. It is located at 506 Lenox Avenue in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City and was founded in 1887. The hosp ...

, where he was treated by the hospital's trauma surgeons, Dr. John W. V. Cordice, Jr. and Dr.

Emil Naclerio Emil A. Naclerio (March 21, 1915 – October 14, 1985) was an American doctor and surgeon who is most notable for operating on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to save his life after a 1958 assassination attempt. Attempted assassination of MLK Izola ...

. At one point, Chief of Surgery Aubre de Lambert Maynard entered and attempted to remove the letter opener from King's chest, but cut his glove on the blade; a surgical clamp was needed to remove it. File:Briefoeffner mit kuvert und hand fcm.jpg, Opening a letter File:Elektrischer Brieföffner HEFTER OL400.JPG, Electric letter opener File:Elektrischer Brieföffner Premier 1624 von Martin Yale Industries (3).jpg, Electric letter opener Premier 1624 (Martin Yale Industries) File:Briefoeffner mit Hand fcm.jpg, Conventional letter opener File:Uncut book p1190369.jpg, Uncut book pages, to be cut with a paper knife

References

Knives Office equipment {{tool-stub