SS Dagger 1211/39

[A.J. Zawadzki]

Greetings all, just back from a planning meeting at Vancouver's Polish Ex-Servicemans Association for this weekend's commemorative events for the 72nd Anniversary of the May 1944 fourth assault on Monte Cassino, and one of the members brought along this SS dagger to get my opinion. This is entirely out of my collecting area and expertise, so I will post here for the experts to comment. I do have some reservations about various aspects with fit and finish, but again, am nowhere near qualified to make any judgment calls. The dagger was complete with the hanger, pictures of which were taken as an afterthought. Apologies for the poor quality of the photos taken with my phone camera. Hopefully they convey sufficient details to help point out the good and/or the bad.

Many thanks in advance,
Tony

[Wagriff]

Repainted sheath....guards look like plateds, but have distribution numbers? Blade is an RZM marked which does not add up with the distribution mark either. The grip eagle looks like it has peck marks around it, making me suspect it may have been replaced. A glaring tang hole is visible in the lower guard-which it shouldn't be. Poor wood fit to the upper guard but good fit to the lower. Sheath screws look crooked and messed with. Not much point in going on, but this is definitely not a dagger that I would have in my collection. It looks to me like a put together mish-mash of parts.

[Larry C]

Hi AJ..Thankyou for bringing the dagger to this forum..I do echo Williams sentiments also...but one thing shoots it for me is the plated lower guard with an early district Roman numeral stamping.

1. The use of the SS district stamping halted around 1935
2. The later plated guards never had this stamp..so the combination is bogus

The blade appears in the photos as a current repro which the producer is Ernst Pack &Son . The grip is repro ..possibly Czech made. ...the scabbard is shiney new...which is the opposite of the blades condition.

AJ don't waste your time on this one if you are looking to acquire it...like I said..the lower crossguard already nailed the coffin shut . parts dagger mostly repro. The vertical hanger is authentic...but early type.

Regards Larry

[A.J. Zawadzki]

Larry and Wagriff, thank you on behalf of my friend for the time and effort to share your knowledge. This was strictly a fact finding mission for a buddy, not anything I was considering for purchase. My focus remains Polish militaria, although I will admit to a persistent itch for British F-S knives. But having said that, there is an unmistakable allure to these SS dagger and I'd have no problem welcoming a genuine example into my collection as the one representative example of Third Reich militaria. Many thanks again guys.

Cheers,
Tony

[kreta1961]

The entire dagger is a reproduction. Compare the Trademark with a real one!
Regards
Gerd