Wwii german sword - what do i have here?

[anton67]

Picked up this Sword today.
Handle is not in the best shape but the blade is nice.
What do I have here?
No maker markings on blade.
Should I try to clean the handle?

[douglas2496]

Im not an expert but this looks like a WW1 German officers sword to me, I suspect for an Artillery Officer as it has crossed canons. If it was me a would just give the rusted areas a good brush with a very stiff brush (like a nail brush) and it may look better. I would recommend against aggressive cleaning.

[rbminis]

There should be no rust if this is made of brass, which it should be.
Ralph.

[anton67]

Are you saying it is a repro?

[douglas2496]

Im on dodgy ground here with my lack of knowledge and its likely Ralph knows more than I do! However the sword looks good to me and it looks similar to No.13 shown by Micheal Ryan on this forum An Aid to Manufacturer Identification -- Other Langet Designs

I have seen this sword in person when I visited Micheal and as I recall it was guilded steel, with the guilding missing, if my memory serves me correctly. Micheal has the finest collection of German swords I know of.

[BOB COLEMAN]

Definitely a period original WW 1 artillery officer's dress sword I believe Larry C will chime in on how to best treat this sword in regards to cleaning.

[Larry C]

Hi Douglas...thankyou for the post..and yes i have to agree also of the loss of plating. Michael Ryan has carved a name for himself here..and has created the idea of a Swords Sub forum. I have not seen anything equal to be found on any other website except on the WRF.

Side note: Douglas..if you can track Michael down and tell him..he is sorely missed..the WRF would be grateful...and I would be in your debt.

The sword itself...in restoring it or cleaning it up...looking at the amount of rust on the grip and langet..one has to judge how deep does the rust go..and if there was an attempt to remove the rust..surely it will leave some type of remnant blemish on the steel.

Personally if there is any value left in it..I would leave it alone..or there is an extreme chance you may damage the steel more so than what its presently worth. Take into consideration those people who degrade perfectly conditioned K98 bayos with crap etches. So Anton..Im not comparing you to those who do such a disservice..but speaking on value of the sword ..I would leave it alone. You may want to take a dry cloth..and rub off the topical rust and dirt..and see where that takes you.

Crusty but Original from what Michael Ryan has taught us . Regards Larry

[anton67]

Thank you all for your input.
The blade is actually in nice shape.

[anton67]

Update. I tried a magnet on the handle and it is in fact NOT brass but steel.
I used a tooth brush and a rag on the rust and it came up a little nicer.

[Frogprince]

An interesting sword it does have a few minor anomalies as compared to some other WW I era swords made of substitute materials (for brass). The first being a lack of etching which was typical of most Officer's and many EM types. The other being that later private purchase iron/steel hilted swords very often had a black painted finish (or blued with some) versus plated. Best Regards, Fred