Eunjangdo

The eunjangdo is a type of silver knife or norigae ornament historically worn in Korea, serving as both a practical tool and a decorative accessory. It developed during the Joseon dynasty, when both men and women commonly wore jangdo knives whose design, materials and craftsmanship evolved over the period, and the court's use of gold versions, called geumjangdo, alongside silver ones made the eunjangdo a marker of social hierarchy; by 1498, under Yeonsangun, its use by commoners was prohibited because of the strategic value of gold and silver, a restriction that continued into the 1670s under Hyunjong. Women wore the knife with a breast tie called paedo and a pocket called nangdo, some versions incorporated chopsticks so a wearer could eat safely away from home, and blades were sometimes engraved with mottoes of devotion, since the knife itself symbolized fidelity.