Original Item: Only One Available. This is a great example of a mid-war production 2nd Model Luftwaffe dagger. It is a fine Solingen-Produced example made by the legendary firm of Carl Eickhorn. The celluloid grip of this dagger is a nice light caramel color, having faded from the original ivory white, and remains in good condition throughout.  It has a nice slightly tapered shape, and is tightly wrapped with silver bullion wire over twisted wires. There is some cracking on either end, as the celluloid becomes brittle, and a chunk has broken off near the ferrule, still held in place by the wrapping.

The hilt mounts are in similar condition. The pommel is very good and still shows most of the original detail.  The "mobile" swass on both sides are clear, with most of the original gold highlighting present, and the oak leaves around them are raised out and heavily hand enhanced. The pommel appears to be solid aluminum, and not plated, so it would not have the blackening seen on plated examples. It does have a bit of wear around the edges. 

The crossguard is also made of Aluminum, which was an "Air Age" material, which was used to make most airplanes. It was considered fitting and desirable for the eagle-shaped guard to be made of this material. The front side is an eagle with a breast and talon area that is vaulted out much more so than the crossguards seen on other types of daggers. This guard shows little wear and has great feathering on the eagle. The bird, of course, flies to the left and grasps a mobile swas in his talons. The reverse panel is decorated with small pebbling, which is still clear. The ferrule looks to be zinc, and much of the plating has worn off. Tied around this is an original portepee, which is in good condition, and tied in the Luftwaffe style. There is definitely fraying and loss of bullion in areas: this dagger appears to have been worn quite a lot.

The blade on this example is not nickel plated, which is common for later produced blades. The ricasso is etched with the 1935-41 Eickhorn trademark: a seated squirrel holding a sword, with the word ORIGINAL above and the firm's name and location, Eickhorn / SOLINGEN below. Carl Eickhorn is a legendary maker from Solingen, the famous "City of Blades" in Western Germany.

According to  J. Anthony Carter's book, GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS, this company was founded in 1865 by Carl Eickhorn, and is arguably the most famous of all Solingen makers. Not only could the family trace their history back 500 years, but they could also demonstrate involvement in the hardening and grinding industries for the same period. Truly the nobility of Solingen Edged weapon dynasties. Eickhorn edged weapons are the most desirable of all makers.

The original leather blade buffer is in place within the deep recesses of the guard. Below this, there is the named MARTIN HERZOG on the blade, which is done very cleanly, and almost looks stamped, though it may be from an engraving pen. We do not have any information on this soldier, so we leave this as some nice research potential.

The blade is in very good condition, and bright, with a good amount of the factory crossgrain visible in the light, particularly near the cross guard. It does appear to have had some oxidation in the past, which was polished out, making the cross grain faint in many areas. The tip also looks to have been bent slightly and repaired, probably from being dropped. The edge is still in the correct factory unsharpened state.

This steel scabbard is in good condition, with a dent and bend on the front about 3 inches from the bottom. It was originally zinc plated, but this has all but worn away. The hanger bands are aluminum alloy, and are well defined and have hand enhanced oak leaves tipped at a 45 degree angle. They do however show significant wear, and the harder steel rings themselves have worn quite a bit into the fittings, indicating significant use. The throat is retained by two flathead screws, one in each side, and is the narrower version seen. The screws do not appear to have been messed with at all.

This really is a very nice Named 2nd Model Luftwaffe Dagger with portepee, made by a legendary maker and offered in very good condition, ready to display!