Original German WWII 1941 dated SA Dagger by Tigerwerk Lauterjung & Co. with Scabbard – RZM M7/68 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This very nice condition mid-war period produced SA Dagger has nickel-plated fittings throughout. The guards and tang nut on this example are nickel plated zinc alloy, and have suffered plating loss and oxidation over the years, particularly on the flat sides. There is not any major chipping or dents in the fittings, just the effects of age and oxidation, along with cleaning to remove oxidation. The pommel nut is plated steel, showing just a bit of turning, and the handle is a bit loose on the tang.

The grip is a fine product with a fine dark mahogany brown color tone in the surfaces and having medium center ridge construction. This grip is in very good condition with great grain, and fits the crossguards well, with no chipping and just a tiny bit of cracking near the cross guard. The symbol button is nicely set having fully intact enameling, and the plating intact with only light wear. The details are still mostly present the inlaid aluminum eagle, including the beak, breast feathering, wing feathering, talons, wreath and mobile swas (hook cross). It is definitely a later war example, and does show some wear to the soft aluminum.

The blade of this example is in very good condition, still showing much of the original factory final polish grind cross grain. This texture is iconic, and is the definitive identifying characteristic for a real WWII German Blade. There is a bit of runner wear, as well as overall light oxidation and staining, which has made the cross grain faint in areas. It looks like it has had some cleaning in the past, though no major polishing or resurfacing. The acid-etched Alles für Deutschland (Everything for Germany) SA motto is still quite crisp, with the factory darkening mostly worn away from cleaning.

The rear is marked with the RZM contract information:

((RZM))
M7 / 68
1941

This marking indicates the dagger was made by RZM Dagger contractor “68” in 1941, which is Lauterjung & Co., Tiger Stahlwaren- und Waffenfabrik, a famous manufacturer in Solingen, the legendary “City of Blades” in Western Germany. Their trademark was a Tiger, and their factory was thus often referred to as Tigerwerk (Tiger Works). The firm was founded in 1873 to make knives, scissors, and other steel ware, and survived until after the war. There were several different branches of the Lauterjung family involved in edged weapons, operating under different trade names to avoid confusion. For more information please see GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS by J. Anthony Carter.

The Reichszeugmeisterei, or RZM, was was based at the Brown house in Munich and NSDAP party headquarters in Berlin. The RZM ensured that the manufacturers of military items were consistent in design, quality of materials and other characteristics of the items. It also defined standards of design, manufacturing and quality and published an authoritative color chart for textiles. The M7 in the code stands for knives/daggers, contractor 68 stands for firm Tigerwerk Lauterjung & Co..

The scabbard on this example is the correct mid production type, with a brown enamel painted steel body and plated steel mounts. The steel shell is completely straight throughout, with no dents we can see. The original brown paint is retained at about 80%, showing overall age crazing and checking, which really is quite lovely. There are areas where the enamel has flaked away, allowing the steel to oxidize. The scabbard shell is fitted with fine nickel-plated steel mounts, which show light oxidation and wear. They nicely match the crossguards and are complete with all four dome head screws without any signs of turning.

A very nice example of an SA dagger from a desirable maker, complete with its original scabbard. Ready to display!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 8 3/4″
Overall length: 13 3/4”
Crossguard: 3”
Scabbard Length: 10”

History of the SA-

The SA or Brown Shirts, were a private political formation which Adolf AH and the NSDAP used to maintain order at organized Party meetings and demonstrations. The group was formed in 1921, and grew to a huge force of nearly 3,000,000 men by the later 1930’s. To instill esprit de corps, as well as create employment for the Blade City of Solingen, it was decided each SA man would carry a dagger with his Brown Shirt uniform. Huge quantities needed to be produced to accommodate the demand. The dagger initially was produced of hand-fitted nickel mounts with attractive finished wood grip and brown anodized (a bluing process) finished scabbard.

The blade was etched with the SA motto, Alles für Deutschland. Examples produced prior to 1935 were stamped with the German sector of the SA group on reverse lower crossguard. Later examples underwent standardization through the RZM ministry. These pieces were produced of cheaper plated zinc-base fittings and scabbards were simply painted brown.

Prior to his “unmasking” as a traitor, Ernst Röhm was the leader of the SA. In 1934, he distributed approximately 100,000 SA daggers with his personal inscription on the reverse blade. These daggers were to honor individuals who had served with the SA prior to December, 1931. Other than the inscription, these pieces were identical to the standard M1933 SA dagger. After the Röhm purge, the inscription was ordered to be removed. Many examples were returned to the factory for grinding. Others were simply ground in the field by whatever means were available. Examples will occasionally be encountered with remnants of the original inscription remaining on the blade, but mostly none will remain. Some blades exist with an intact inscription, reflecting only the removal of the Röhm signature. Very very rarely is an example seen with a full, untouched inscription, as the holder would have surely risked a charge of treason.

After the purge, the NSKK, which had been a part of the SA, was split off into a separate organization. They retained the same daggers as the SA, however now used a black painted scabbard, and their officer’s daggers had a few differences as well.