Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very interesting German WWII SA Dagger, which definitely shows some interesting customization, and was definitely made from the components more than one dagger. It features very early pattern fittings, however the blade is a 1938 dated RZM marked example by the rare maker Karl Tiegel, Tiegelwerk, located in Riemberg, today part of Poland. The dagger comes complete with an early pattern scabbard, however it has had the steel body between the fittings covered with leather, which we have not seen before. There is also a leather "buffer" against the crossguard, not usually seen on these daggers. This is definitely a dagger with a lot of history to it!

The dagger has solid nickel silver fittings throughout, which are of the earliest pattern construction. The cross guards and tang nut are in very good condition throughout with all fittings having a nice lightly aged patina. The lower reverse guard is Gruppe/Gau marked P, for Pommern (Pomeranian Region), which was an area along the Baltic Sea, most of which is today part of Poland. The main city of the area was Stettin, today the Polish city of Szczecin. This feature was only seen on daggers produced 1935 and prior. The nickel alloy end nut shows only a bit of turning, and the hilt is solid on the tang.

The grip is a fine product having a lovely red mahogany brown brown color, with a medium center ridge construction. There is some light wear and pressure denting, and there is also some wood chipped away near the round SA Symbol, running from the center all the way to the edge. There is also a small chip near the cross guard. The stain used on the grip can cause the wood to become brittle, and the pressure from the guards can cause the wood to split. The grip fits the crossguards nicely, with no wobble we can feel. The symbol button is nicely set, and still has most of the translucent enamel intact, with some areas a bit worn. There is a bit of verdigris surrounding the emblem. The grip eagle is a fine example being the style with beak that points straight. Most of the details are still there to the eagle to include the beak, breast feathering, wing feathering, talons, wreath and mobile swas. There is a bit of wear as well as more verdigris oxidation, showing that is the correct solid nickel silver for an early pattern eagle.

The blade of this example is in very good service used condition, showing overall past wear and oxidation, which was then polished out. This has unfortunately almost completely removed the original factory final polish grind cross grain. We can just see a bit of this texture in areas. This texture is iconic, and is the definitive identifying characteristic for a real WWII German Blade. The dagger retains the original factory "blunt" edge, with no dents or chips, just a bit of bending / deformation near the tip. The acid-etched Alles für Deutschland (Everything for Germany) SA motto is present, but a bit worn from cleaning, and much of the factory darkening is missing.

The rear is etched with the RZM contract information:

This marking indicates the dagger was made by RZM Dagger contractor "81", which records show is the rare maker Karl Tiegel, Tiegelwerk (Tiegel Works), located in Riemberg, then part of the Schlesien Bezirk (Silesian District) Breslau. Post-war this area was returned to Poland, and is now known as Rościsławice, and is part of the Lower Silesian Vovoidship. Tiegel also operated a depot in Solingen-Gräfrath, part of the legendary "City of Blades" in western Germany. Per J. Anthony Carter's fine work GERMAN SWORD AND KNIFE MAKERS, this metalworking business was first founded in 1877 to produce butchers' kitchen and professional knives. They produced some SA and NSKK daggers during WWII, first with their own trademark during the early years, and later with their RZM code during the 1938-1940 period. This is only the second example of a Karl Tiegel edged weapon that we have ever seen, and the firm is assumed to have been abandoned and probably destroyed during the Russian advance in 1945.

The Reichszeugmeisterei (National Quartermaster's Office), 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 81 stands for Karl Tiegel of Riemberg.

The scabbard shell looks to be straight throughout, however it is completely covered with leather, so cannot really assess the condition. The upper and lower fittings are solid nickel silver, with a great look and some dents and scratches showing typical wear on the locket. The chape fitting however has had the end ball completely crushed in an cracked, almost bent backwards. The nickel alloy is soft, so damage is common, but not to this extent. The throat nicely matches the crossguards, and all four original screws are present.

A very interesting SA dagger with a blade by a very rare and desirable maker, complete with a leather covered scabbard. This is a dagger that looks to have seen some real service during the war, and possibly afterwards. 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.