Original German WWII Chained NSKK Officer’s Dagger with Scabbard by Weyersberg Kirschbaum – RZM M7/42 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very good condition and extremely rare mid-war period produced NSKK Officer’s Dagger, with the correct “Chained” scabbard. It was produced by the famous Solingen-based firm of Weyersberg, Kirschbaum & Co.. The knife itself has nickel-plated fittings throughout. The crossguards and tang nut are nickel plated zinc alloy, and have about 80% of the plating intact, with a patch on the upper guard which flaked off. There is some oxidation where the grip wood meets the guards, which is typical. There is not any major chipping or dents in the fittings, just the usual effects of age.

The grip is a fine product having a nice red mahogany tone in the surfaces and having medium center ridge construction. This grip is in very good condition with great grain, and fits the crossguards like a glove. The symbol button is nicely set having fully intact enameling, and the plating intact with just a bit of verdigris. The details are still there to the aluminum eagle, including the beak, breast feathering, wing feathering, talons, wreath and mobile swas. 

The scabbard shell is straight throughout and has good original black enamel paint. It has a few chips, but nothing major, and has the usual crazing and checking that confirm its age. The scabbard shell is equipped with fine matching plated steel mounts. These mounts are in very good condition overall, with slight denting to the lower ball. They nicely match the crossguards, however one of the lower fitting dome head screws is missing.

The scabbard is equipped with an NSKK chain assembly, with four upper and five lower links. The decoration on the links alternates between NSSK eagles and raised sun wheel symbols. The center link on the lower length is marked with the special triangle symbol used exclusively by the NSKK. The plating on this chain is worn and patinated, with flaking in areas . The first link of the upper chain length is marked MUSTERSCHUTZ / NSKK / KORPSFUHRUNG, indicating it is made per the NSKK leadership specifications. The lower chain is marked RZM M5/8, for F. W. Assmann & Söhne of Lüdenscheid. These chain lengths are connected to a good nickel plated snap clip marked with an acorn between a pair of oak leaves, which is attached to a nice belt loop.

The blade of this example is in excellent condition and has virtually all of its factory crossgrain. There do not appear to be any rust issues aside from some specks of staining, and the original factory edge is intact. There is also the usual runner wear from the scabbard. The acid-etched Alles für Deutschland (Everything for Germany) SA motto is deep and crisp, with a fine frosted background typical of WKC.

The reverse ricasso is etched with a double circle with RZM logo in the middle over M7 / 42. This indicates Post-1941 manufacture by the firm Weyersberg, Kirschbaum & Co and has been manufacturing military swords and cutlery in Solingen, Germany- a city famous since the middle ages for its metal-working and craftsmanship in sword making. The traditional manufacturing of swords at WKC dates back to the year 1774 when the Weyersberg first registered the ”Kings head” as their trademark. Later in 1883 the company merged with the Kirschbaums and the company WKC was formed as it exists today.

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 42 stands for firm Weyersberg, Kirschbaum & Co, a famous maker from Solingen, the famous “City of Blades” in Western Germany, which marketed many fine edged weapons.

An excellent mid-war example of a Chained NSKK Officer’s dagger from a top maker. 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.