Original German WWII Army Officer Dove Head Sword by F. W. Höller of Solingen with Steel Scabbard

Original Item: Only One Available. This Army Dove Head Sword is a lovely example, made by the firm F. W. Höller of Solingen, the legendary "City of Blades" in Western Germany. It features a great nickel plated blade, and comes complete with the correct black enamel painted steel scabbard.

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.

The chappe/langet features a raised out "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 4 brass wires, the center two of which are twisted and wrapped with thin bullion wire, and the wrapping is mostly intact and in place. There is some dirt and oxidation around the wires, and they show a oxidized patina. The grip is tight to the blade, while the other hilt components have some movement.

The nickel plated blade is 32 inches long, made of high quality spring steel. The plating is in very good condition, showing some spots of light oxidation, but no major flaking or other damage. The edge is still correctly unsharpened, and does not have any dents or nicks. The tip is also fully intact and unbent. The original leather blade buffer is still present and in very good condition.

The reverse ricasso is maker marked with a "losenge" style trademark logo that reads F. W. HÖLLER / SOLINGEN, surrounding the trademark Höller "Thermometer" emblem. This is a well-known maker from Solingen, the famous "City of Blades" in Western Germany, which produced many fine edged weapons. F.W. Höller, Waffenfabrik (Weapons Factory), located in Solingen, the legendary "City of Blades" 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 included steel scabbard is in very good shape, though it does have a bend to the steel body about 8 inches below the drag, which itself looks to have been ground flat on the bottom. The black enamel paint on the scabbard is in very good shape, looking to possibly have been repainted during the WWII period. It shows wear and scuffing to the exterior. The scabbard still retains the original hanger ring and flat loop to hook on the belt hanger, which are missing the painted finish.

Overall a lovely example of a German Army Officer Dove Head sword by a desirable maker, complete with scabbard. Ready to display!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 32"
Blade Style: Single Edge w/ Fuller
Overall length: 36 5/8“
Guard dimensions: 5" width x 5” length
Scabbard length: 34 1/8”

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.