Original Item: Only One Available. This is an original German WWII Heer Army Officer Dove Head Sword by F. W. Höller of Solingen, complete with its black enamel painted steel scabbard and officer’s Troddel sword knot. It features a nickel plated 31 1/2" blade, gilt brass alloy hilt, black celluloid grip, and the distinctive Höller thermometer trademark on the reverse ricasso.

The hilt is constructed from gilt brass alloy rather than later plated aluminum. Much of the gilding has worn from the exposed surfaces, while protected areas retain stronger traces and the balance of the brass has developed a mature mustard colored patina. The Dove Head pommel, backstrap, side tabs, flat P guard, and ferrule are decorated with engraved oak leaf and acorn motifs. The obverse langet carries a raised closed wing Heer national eagle with detailed feathering, talons, and mobile hook cross, while the reverse langet is plain and remains unmonogrammed.

The grip is black celluloid over a carved wood core and remains in very good condition, showing only light wear with no visible cracks or chips. It is wrapped with a four wire brass skein, the two center strands twisted and additionally wrapped with fine bullion wire. Most of the wire remains intact and properly seated, with some accumulated dirt, oxidation, and areas of verdigris. The hilt components remain tight to the blade.

A leather and bullion officer’s Troddel is wrapped around the hilt. The leather shows age, surface cracking, and edge wear but no major tears or splitting, and the color remains well retained. The double rows of aluminum bullion show some pulled areas, though the reverse stitching is still almost entirely intact, while the end knot remains complete with overall age related oxidation.

The nickel plated blade measures approximately 31 1/2" and is made from spring steel. The plating remains very good overall with scattered light oxidation and no major flaking. The edge remains correctly unsharpened but shows numerous dents, nicks, and impact marks, likely from later misuse, while the tip remains straight and intact with plating loss confined mainly to the extreme point. The original leather blade buffer is still present and remains in very good condition.

The reverse ricasso is maker marked with the lozenge style:

F.W. HÖLLER
SOLINGEN

marking surrounding the Höller firms trademark "Thermometer" emblem emblem.   F.W. Höller, Waffenfabrik (Weapons Factory), was a well-known maker located in Solingen, the legendary "City of Blades" (Klingenstadt) in western Germany. During the WWII Period they manufactured many SA and NSKK daggers, both with their "thermometer" trademark and later with the RZM code M7/33. They also produced numerous 98K bayonets and other edged weapons. The firm was founded in 1866, and registered in Solingen in 1883. By 1900 ownership had passed to Emil Höller, and it continued manufacture after WWII, finally closing in 1974. For more information please see J. Anthony Carter's fine work GERMAN SWORD AND KNIFE MAKERS.

The steel scabbard is straight overall and remains in very good condition, with only a few small dents toward the lower portion. The original black enamel finish is largely retained with light scuffing and wear along the sides, checking and crazing from age, and finish loss mainly at the drag. The original hanger ring and flat suspension loop remain present, with some paint loss to these fittings.

With its F. W. Höller thermometer trademark, gilt brass Dove Head hilt, engraved oak leaf decoration, nickel plated blade, original leather blade buffer, officer’s Troddel, and matching black enamel steel scabbard, this is a strong Heer officer sword ensemble. The blade edge nicks, oxidation, verdigris, worn gilding, bullion wear, and minor scabbard dents are all fully disclosed. It would display especially well in a Heer officer edged weapon, F. W. Höller, Dove Head sword, dress sword, or advanced German WWII edged weapon collection.

Specifications:
Blade Length: 31 1/2"
Blade Style: Single Edge w/ Fuller
Overall length: 36 1/8“
Guard dimensions: 5" width x 5” length
Scabbard length: 32"

The German Army (German: Heer, was the land forces component of the Wehrmacht, the German armed forces, from 1935 to 1945. The Wehrmacht also included the Kriegsmarine (Navy) and the Luftwaffe (Air Force). During World War II, a total of about 15 million soldiers served in the German Army, of whom about seven million became casualties. Separate from the army, the Waffen-SS (Armed SS) was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. Growing from three regiments to over 38 divisions during World War II, it served alongside the army but was never formally part of it.

Only 17 months after AH announced publicly the rearmament program, the Army reached its projected goal of 36 divisions. During the autumn of 1937, two more corps were formed. In 1938, four additional corps were formed with the inclusion of the five divisions of the Austrian Army after the Anschluss in March. During the period of its expansion by Adolf AH, the German Army continued to develop concepts pioneered during World War I, combining ground (Heer) and air (Luftwaffe) assets into combined arms teams. Coupled with operational and tactical methods such as encirclements and the "battle of annihilation", the German military managed quick victories in the two initial years of World War II, prompting the use of the word Blitzkrieg (literally lightning war, meaning lightning-fast war) for the techniques used.

The German Army entered the war with a majority of its infantry formations relying on the horse for transportation. The infantry remained foot soldiers throughout the war; artillery also remained primarily horse-drawn. The motorized formations received much attention in the world press in the opening years of the war, and were cited as the main reason for the success of the German invasions of Poland (September 1939), Norway and Denmark (April 1940), Belgium, France and Netherlands (May 1940), Yugoslavia (April 1941) and the early campaigns in the Soviet Union (June 1941). However their motorized and tank formations accounted for only 20% of the Heer's capacity at their peak strength.