10

On May 23, 1883 Carl Wienke applied for a U. S. patent for his “Lever-Corkscrew.” Patents had

already been issued in Germany (May 26, 1883), England (April 20, 1883), France (May 7,

1883), and Belgium (May 7, 1883). He was granted U. S. Patent No. 283,731 on August 21,

1883. His corkscrews were produced in Germany by Eduard Becker.

Left: This example

of Wienke’s patent

celebrates the

Columbian

Exposition. The

corkscrew is

marked on the

neckstand AUG.

21st. 1883 PAT'D

and MADE IN

GERMANY on the

blade. One side of

the handle depicts

Columbus, ships,

and a world globe with anchor with the word

“Columbus”. On the other side is “1492 - 1892.”

Above: Becker produced

boxes full of “Columbus”

corkscrews.

Becker continued to use the “Columbus” as a brand name for his Solingen “Kolumbuswerk”

throughout the Twentieth Century. In the example shown above, Becker used the popular

neckstand design created by Ernst Steinfeld in 1899 and added a can opener on one end of the

handle.