Original Item: Only One Available: The SS (Schutzstaffel) was originally formed in 1925, ostensibly to act as a small, loyal bodyguard unit to protect the Führer, Adolf AH. Under the direction of the Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler, the SS grew to be the most ruthless and feared organization of the 20th century. They were the vanguard of Germany eventually controlled nearly every function of German life and much of Occupied Europe. The SS Dienstdolch (service dagger) was introduced in 1933. Early on, members of the SS were awarded their daggers during a ceremony at the Feldherrnhalle Memorial in Munich. The annual ritual, charged with mysticism and meant to evoke the traditions of medieval Teutonic knights, was held on 9 November, the date of the unsuccessful Munich Putsch of 1923. Both officers and enlisted men wore the identical dagger until 1936. After this time, only enlisted men wore the M1933 dagger.

The SS Dagger was originally equipped with nickel crossguards with an ebony wood grip. The black grip contained a National eagle with swas insignia recessed in the center area and an SS sigrunne button inset at the top. On early examples the scabbard shell surface was factory blackened using a metal bluing process. The scabbard had nickel mounts. The SS blade was a polished type containing the SS motto, Meine Ehre Heisst Treue (My Honor is Loyalty). Early examples were mostly hand-fit. Production of later examples was more standardized, using cheaper, nickel-plated fittings with black painted scabbard shells. They could be held with a standard belt hanger, or a much rarer vertical hanger.

The blade on this nice mid-war production dagger remains mostly bright, and is quite attractive. We often see these quite worn and oxidized, but not this example. The rear is marked with the RZM and SS contract information:

This marking indicates manufacture by Carl Malsch-Spitzer, Messerfabrik (Knife Factory) of Steinbach Kreis Meiningen in Thuringia. This RZM code is often erroneously identified as Carl Spitzer of Malsch, but this is incorrect, as there is no such company. Also the Spitzer family of Knife makers was based in Solingen, not Malsch. According to GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS by J. Anthony Carter, the company manufactured SA and SS daggers during the third reich period, first using their Trademark logo, and later using the RZM code M7/91. Daggers are also seen like this, with both the regular RZM code and the SS RZM code. The company continued after the war, but as of 2001 the factory stood empty.

The blade still shows quite a bit of the original factory final polish crossgrain on both sides, and is much better than the typical examples that we see. This texture is iconic, and is the definitive identifying characteristic for a real WWII German Blade. It has not been sharpened like some were by USGI's, and still has the original edge. There is some runner wear, as well as staining on the blade flats that has been polished out, but SS daggers we see are usually in very worn condition. We would consider this blade to be in very good condition. The etched SS motto, Meine Ehre heißt Treue (My honor is loyalty) is crisp with almost all of the factory blackening in the black letter fonts in the backgrounds. The blade shoulders perfectly meet the lower crossguard contour, and has just a bit of wobble.

The crossguards of this dagger and tang nut are in good condition throughout, and are of the mid war plated construction, with an aluminum base metal. Unfortunately the plating worn away over a majority of the guards, leaving a faintly oxidized patina behind. The pommel nut is also aluminum, and still has a lot of plating on the bottom. As these are mid-war, there is no district numeral stamped into the cross guard.

The ebony grip is a very nice example, with some chipping and cracking by the pommel guard, which also has a chunk missing. The black dyeing process for the grips unfortunately causes the wood to become brittle, so damage is common. The silvered ᛋᛋ doppelte Siegrune (Double Sig/Victory Rune) symbol and double circles are in great shape, with intact plating and enamel. The aluminum grip eagle is the "high-necked" type with the beak pointing slightly up. It remains in good condition, showing very little wear, just a bit of light scratching and a few dents.

The scabbard shell is a solid example, completely straight and undented, with very little damage of any kind. It is the correct black enamel paint finish, with the expected light crazing and checking from age. There are are only a few small scrapes through the finish. The matching nickel plated steel scabbard mounts are in very nice condition. The lower ball is not dented in, something we rarely see, even on steel fittings. All four dome head screws are intact, and do not look to have been messed with. There is definitely some light wear and staining on the fittings, but nothing major.

The attached belt hanger is in very good condition, with the leather showing only light wear, and the spring clip fully functional. The plated steel spring clip is (RZM) marked M5/71 over olc in a diamond, for Overhoff & Cie. of Lüdenscheid, who produced numerous clothing accessories. The leather is also marked, with (RZM) L2/60/41 (ᛋᛋ) on the clip portion, and (ᛋᛋ) l/35 (RZM) on the belt loop portion. Some fantastic research potential here!

This is a great chance to own a very good condition SS dagger from the mid-war period made by a rare and desirable maker! Complete with a great scabbard and hanger, this dagger is ready to display!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 8 3/4"
Blade Style: Double Edged Dagger
Overall length: 13 3/4”
Crossguard: 3”
Scabbard Length: 10”

The RZM, Reichzeugmeisterei, (National Equipment Quartermaster), was officially founded in June 1934 in Munich by the NSDAP, Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei, (National Socialist German Worker's Party), as a Reich Hauptamt, (State Central Office), and was based on the earlier SA Quartermaster's Department. The registry was was based at the Brown house in Munich and NSDAP party headquarters in Berlin.

The functions of the RZM were not only to procure and distribute items to Party formations, but also to approve chosen designs and to act as a quality control supervisor to ensure items manufactured for the Party met required specification and were standardized. Starting in late 1934 items manufactured for the SS came under the quality control of the RZM and as a result were to be marked with the RZM/SS approval/acceptance mark.  The M7 in the code stands for daggers, with Carl Malsch-Spitzer being contractor number 91.

Shortly after this, the SS started using a separate listing of contractors, and in 1943 the Waffen-SS assumed full control over their uniform item production and no longer fell under the authority of the RZM.