Germany. A German Hunting Society Damascus Steel Cutlass, Collector’s Copy, by Ernst Pack & Söhne

(Deutscher Jägerschaft Hirschfänger). A high-quality and extremely well-preserved Deutcher Jägerschaft (German Hunting Society) collector’s copy cutlass, measuring 480 mm in total length when inserted into the scabbard. It features a 334 mm-long magnetic Damascus steel blade with a sharpened tip and unspoiled edges. The obverse bearing a gilt inscription of “SEINEM LIEBEN FREUND SCHRECK, FALKNERHOF-RIDDAGSHAUSEN, DEN 3. NOV 1937” (“YOUR DEAR FRIEND SCHRECK, FALKNERHOF-RIDDAGSHAUSEN, NOVEMBER 3RD 1937”) in Fraktur script, above a finely-detailed German Hunting Society logo adjacent to the ricasso. The reverse bears a gilt dedication of “DER REICHSJÄGERMEISTER HERMANN GÖRING” (“THE REICH MASTER OF THE HUNT, HERMANN GÖRING”) in Fraktur and cursive script, above a gilt depiction of a ram atop a forested and arabesque design. Completing the reverse side is a maker’s mark set into the ricasso of “E.P. & S., SOLINGEN” for Ernst Pack & Söhne, circumscribing the firm’s classic blacksmith logo. The blade sits securely within a multi-piece nickel-silver hilt, with the seam covered by an intact black leather buffer pad. The stag’s leg crossguard transitions into a curved handguard with oak leaf designs connecting to a pommel in the form of a finely-detailed double-sided wolf’s head. Emanating from the obverse of the crossguard is a clamshell bearing a raised stag, flanked on the hilt by a duck in mid-flight. The handle grip is composed of two pieces of polished celluloid painted with a stylized texture to imitate a staghorn pattern. Secured together with two non-magnetic metal rivets, the obverse handle piece is inset with a silvered bronze mobile swastika measuring 17 mm (w) x 17 mm (h). The cutlass is accompanied by its period original scabbard, constructed of a magnetic metal core wrapped with a boiled brown leather exterior liner. Nickel-silver fittings are secured to both the tip and throat with oversized reverse rivets, with the throat fixtures bearing a downward-pointing hook featuring a raised pheasant for the accommodation of a frog. Demonstrating only minor loss of finish to the nickel-silver features, which complement the antiquarian feel of the cutlass, this exceptional collector’s copy is in an extremely fine condition.