A finely made 18th century steel fork mounted on engraved silver and inlaid shell handle. Approximately 18 cm in length. Europe, early 18th century.

Forks were introduced as early as the 11th century, but were extremely controversial and even scandalous for hundreds of years, not gaining widespread favor in Europe until well into the 18th century. Italian gentlemen were among the first Europeans to embrace the use a two-pronged fork as an eating utensil in the early 1600s, though many considered the practice “effeminate” and some even believed it to be heretical.

The French were slow to make using forks {sometimes called “split spoons”} acceptable, the English also saw them as effeminate and needless. Finally in 1633, King Charles I of England declared, “It is decent to use a fork,” thereby ushering in what many considered the beginning of civilized dining, although it took almost a century before forks were commnonplace and accepted in society. And it was not until The Georgian period (which began in 1714 with the coronation of George), that the fork achieved the form which is now most familiar, four curved tines. But really through most of the 18th century, many people still ate with a knife and their hands.  While some French hosts provided two or three communal knives at the table, diners who wished to use a fork were expected to bring their own.