Original German WWII Excellent Early M33 SS Dagger by Heinrich Böker & Co. with Scabbard & Rare Vertical Leather Hanger

Original Item: Only One Available: The SS (Schutzstaffel - 'Protection Squadron') 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 infamous Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler, the SS grew to be the most ruthless and feared organization of the 20th century. They were the vanguard of NSDAP and eventually controlled nearly every function of German life and much of Occupied Europe. The SS 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 equipped with nickel cross guards with an ebony wood grip. The black grip contained a National eagle with swas insignia recessed in the center area and an ᛋᛋ doppelte Siegrune (Double Sig/Victory Rune) 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 bore one of three district stampings on the lower reverse crossguard of I, II, or III. 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.

This is a great example of the early style of dagger, complete with a scabbard and rare vertical hanger! The blade is marked on the reverse with the Heinrich Böker & Co., Baumwerk famous "framed" Baum (Tree) trademark logo, with BÖKER / SOLINGEN at the bottom. The company is a famous and desirable manufacturer, founded in 1869 in Solingen, the legendary "City of Blades" in western Germany. They were a known producer of SS daggers during the Pre-WWII period and after, and we have had several examples from Böker before. The company exists today, and has a long and storied history of top quality blade production. Knives made by this maker are highly desirable, and extremely rare on the market. For more information please see GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS by J. Anthony Carter.

The blade on this example is in excellent condition, and is a real gem! It still shows the original factory grind cross grain throughout the entire blade, except where it has been worn smooth by the scabbard runners. This texture is iconic, and is the definitive identifying characteristic for a real WWII German Blade. The blade is almost still fully bright, with just a bit of scattered light staining near one edge. The SS motto, Meine Ehre heißt Treue (Loyalty is my Honor) is crisp with little wear, still showing almost all of the original factory darkening. The blade tip is intact and unbent, and the edge is correctly unsharpened. The blade shoulders perfectly meet the lower cross guard contour, and is solid in the grip. Truly a wonderful SS dagger blade!

The guards of this dagger and tang nut are in good condition throughout, and are of the earliest solid nickel silver construction. They have smooth surfaces, good crisp edges and precise accent grooves. They show just a bit of oxidation, which gives them a "warm" look, opposed to the cold "blue" look of chrome plating. The cross guard is marked with a Roman numeral I on the side, for the first SS district. There is no lifting of the finish, showing these are indeed solid nickel silver. Per a customer request, we checked the inside of the guards, and the pommel guard is marked with II and another faded marking, while the cross guard is marked with a large H on one side and X on the other. We also noted that there is a runic looking symbol on the blade tang, which is shown in the pictures.

The ebony grip is a great example, the best we have seen in some time, possibly ever! The ebony wood used to make the grip is unfortunately brittle, and the treatment used to give it a uniform look exacerbates this. However on this example we cannot discern any cracks or chips, which we almost never see. The color is very good, and wood grain can be seen, which combined with the overall condition really makes this a fantastic grip. The symbol button is positioned at about 7:00 o'clock, as it should be. The silvered SS symbol and double circles around them have a nice matching patina with the nickel still intact, with a little verdigris and complete enamel. The nickel grip eagle is the "high-necked" type with the beak pointing slightly up. It remains in crisp condition, showing little wear to the bird's head, breast and wing feathering and to the talons, wreath or swas.

The scabbard shell is a great example, with a straight steel shell showing very little in the way of denting. The shell originally had a black "anodized" blued finish, which was then lacquered to protect it. Unlike many we see, most of the lacquer is still present on the body of the scabbard, showing some oxidation in areas where the lacquer is scratched away. There are also some small dents on the edge of the top. The matching solid nickel silver scabbard mounts are in good condition, with a lightly oxidized patina, showing past cleaning. The lower ball is dented in, common with the softer nickel alloy, a and the brazed seam has split in several locations. All four nickel dome-headed screws are present, with the lower two showing some turning

The scabbard is held securely in the extremely rare leather vertical hanger, topped with a nickel hanger clip, which is attached to a belt hanger with a plated steel loop. The leather is definitely quite stiff on the hanger itself, and is in delicate condition, which is why it is not fitted to the scabbard. We are not sure that the buckled securing strap would survived the installation process. These are rare in any condition, and is it still in one piece, we want to avoid further damaging it. There are no markings on the hanger, however the belt loop is marked on the back with ((ᛋᛋ)) 80 / 40 (RZM), which we were not able to identify.

A fantastic early SS dagger by a famous Solingen maker with a great blade, complete with the scabbard and rare vertical hanger! They rarely get better than this! Ready to display!

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