Original German WWII Army Heer Officer Dove Head Sword by Clemen & Jung with Bavarian Etched Blade and Scabbard

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a lovely classic Lionhead German WWII Army Officers sword, made by the somewhat rare firm of Clemen & Jung Waffenfabrik, of Solingen, Germany, complete with its steel scabbard. This example has a nickel plated blade, and we are fairly certain that it is a WWI Era blade that was refit for use as an Army Officer sword during WWII. It is definitely wider than usual, and has a lovely etched design on the blade from the Kingdom of Bavaria. Definitely some great research potential here!

The hilt on this example is the classic gilt brass alloy, not the later war plated aluminum. The gilding has however mostly been worn away, probably due to being "mercury gilding", which almost evaporates over time. There is still a bit retained in the recesses of the design, with the balance of the brass showing a lovely lightly oxidized patina. As with many we see, the design is somewhat reminiscent of the "Field Marshall" series of Carl Eickhorn, with this bearing a resemblance to Pattern 1716 - Roon, which has the designs on the hilt engraved instead of embossed. The dove head and backstrap are engraved with the iconic German "Oak Leaves and Acorns" motif, which extends onto the side tabs, and is also on the "flat" P guard. There is a similar design on the ferrule, with a crossed banner.

The chappe/langet features an engraved "closed wing" National eagle looking to the left, which shows excellent detail to his beak, eye, breast feathering, wing feathering, talons and mobile clutched swas (hook cross). The other chappe is blank and would often be used for the officer to add a monogram, however this example is still unmarked. The grip of this example is a black celluloid over a carved wood base. The celluloid is still in very good condition, showing some light wear, and has no chips or cracks we can see. The grip is wrapped with a skein of 6 aluminum wires, twisted into pairs with the center two being slightly larger in diameter. The wrapping is mostly tight to the covering and free of oxidation, though there is a strand missing on the wrapping closest to the guard. The hilt is still tight to the blade, with no movement we can feel.

The 31 1/4" inch blade of this example is in very good condition, with the nickel plating well retained. There are a few areas of minor oxidation and plating loss from age and use, and the edge of the blade is properly unsharpened, though there are scattered small dents and dings along the edge. Both sides show a lovely Bavarian edged design, showing the Bavarian checkerboard coat of arms a the top above some foliate designs, and at the bottom is a panel with the Kingdom's motto: IN TREUE FEST (Steadfast in Loyalty).

The rear ricasso of the blade under the langet is marked with "Crowned Z Shield" trademark of Clemen & Jung Waffenfabrik (Weapons Factory) of Solingen, the legendary "City of Blades" in the mountains of Western Germany. Unfortunately due to the angle there is no way for us to photograph this. This company was founded in 1860, and rapidly gained numerous domestic and foreign contracts for edged weapons. They entered the Solingen Commercial Register in 1876, and in 1898 registered the "Crowned Shield" logo, which has the letter Z inside the shield. This previously had been another makers trademark, but it was transferred to Clemen & Jung. The company supplied many edged weapons for the First World War, and continued during the interwar period, and into the Third Reich period. Army & Luftwaffe Officer daggers and swords are specifically noted for having the "Crowned Shield" on one side of the blade, with the address mark stamped on the other. For more information please see GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS by J. Anthony Carter, pages 132-134.

The steel scabbard of this example is definitely WWI vintage or earlier, and probably original to the blade, as it is wider than usual, and has no square loop on the side. It looks to have been refinished, possibly several times, with some light denting and just a slight bend. It is also missing the throat fitting inside the scabbard.

Overall a very interesting German Army Officer sword, made using a Kingdom of Bavaria marked blade from the Imperial era. Complete with scabbard and ready to display!

Specifications:
Overall length: 36 1/2”
Blade length: 31 1/4"
Blade Style: Single Edged with Fuller
Guard dimensions: 5" width x 5” length
Scabbard Length: 32 1/4"

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.