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Story: Eating

How to hold a knife and fork

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How to hold a knife and fork

In 1951 the Evening Post published a column demonstrating how to hold a knife and fork correctly. They called upon American writer and etiquette expert Emily Post, the author of The blue book of social usage. She provided two acceptable examples and two that were beyond the pale.

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: Evening Post, 5 October 1951, p. 12 (NP-1720-12)

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Kerryn Pollock, Eating – Table etiquette, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/38617/how-to-hold-a-knife-and-fork (accessed 24 June 2026).

Story by Kerryn Pollock, published 20 November 2012.