Germany, Kriegsmarine. An Officer’s Dress Dagger, by Carl Eickhorn

(Kriegsmarine Offiziersdolch). A well-preserved Kriegsmarine Officer’s dress dagger, measuring 42 cm in total length when inserted into the scabbard. It features a 24 cm-long, nickel-plated, magnetic steel blade with a slightly blunted tip. Dual narrow fullers run the majority of the length of each side of the blade, which also features double-sided acid-etched designs consisting of central fouled anchors flanked by arabesque and serpentine imagery. It is also marked on the obverse ricasso with a maker’s mark of “ORIGINAL EICKHORN, SOLINGEN”, surrounding the firm’s classic logo of a squirrel clutching a sword. It sits securely within a gilded bronze crossguard, bearing double-sided central fouled anchors, with the seam covered by an intact brown wool buffer pad. Inset into the obverse of the crossguard is a functional push-button release connecting to a clip which emanates from the ricasso to release the scabbard lock. The handle grip consists of a single piece of ribbed off-white celluloid, with the ribbing retaining an original twisted and rolled bronze wire cord. It completes with a gilded bronze pommel in the form of a German national eagle perched on top of a wreathed mobile swastika, screwing in to maintain the dagger’s structural integrity. It is accompanied by its original scabbard, constructed of a gilded bronze shaft with etched designs distributed around the exterior. Two integral oak leaf bands are set into the upper third of the shaft, each retaining a loop for the accommodation of a hanger. The throat retains a functional catch which locks onto the blade’s clip to securely hold the dagger in place during storage. Minor issues consistent with age and use are evident, including some running marks to the blade and tarnishing of the bronze elements. It remains in a near extremely fine condition.