Original U.S. WWII 503rd PIR Theater-Made V-42 Stiletto Style Fighting Knife with Damascus Blade & Outstanding M6-Style Sheath with Sharpening Stone - 11th Airborne Division

Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is an outstanding V-42 Stiletto-style theater-made fighting knife with a gorgeous damascus blade and custom U.S. Eagle sheath. There is half of a coin embedded in the crossguard embossed I / 503rd for Company I, 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment, which served as an independent regiment in the Pacific War during World War II. This example came to us from the Larry Thomas American Edged Weapon Museum in Intercourse, Pennsylvania, further cementing its authenticity and prestige. 

Based on the Fairbairn–Sykes commando knife designed by William E. Fairbairn and Eric A. Sykes, the Fighting Commando Knife, Type V-42 used a narrow-profile, double-edged blade made of high carbon steel. Its double-edged blade distinguished it from the traditional European stiletto, a stabbing weapon with, typically, a blade without sharpened edges.

The knife sports a 7 ⅛” stiletto blade of damascus with fantastic detailing. The stacked leather washer grip gives it the appearance of an M3 knife, with a fantastic skullcrusher pommel very similar to that of the V-42. The knife is 12½” overall.

The knife comes in a tremendous M6-style sheath with US over the Great Seal of the United States embossed below the throat. The throat has 10 staples, the same as would be on an M6, and this example has an added compartment at the bottom for a sharpening stone, which is still intact! The stone has a small string tied around it to make removal easier, and there is verdigris across the string. The securing strap has a great eagle button snap and is still in fantastic order. The sheath is 15¾” overall including the belt loop.

This is an exceptional example with good service wear to the knife and sheath. Comes ready for further research and display.

Specifications:
Blade Length: 7 1/8"
Blade Style: Stiletto
Overall length: 12 1/2“
Sheath Length: 15 3/4”

The 3rd Battalion, 503rd Parachute Infantry was activated 4 June 1942, formed by elements of the 502nd Parachute Infantry; the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 502nd, became Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 503rd; Company A became Company G; Company B became Company H, and Company C became Company I. The regiment departed the United States in mid-October 1942 for Australia augmented by Company A, 504th Parachute Infantry, which had personally been selected by Major General Matthew Ridgway, the commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, as his best rifle company. Docking in the Panama Canal Zone on 1 November, the 503rd picked up the 501st Parachute Infantry Battalion (minus Company C), which had been undergoing jungle training. The 501st, as well as Company A, 504th, was redesignated as the 503rd's 2nd Battalion: Company A, 501st became Company E, 503rd; Company B, 501st became Company F, 503rd; and Company A, 504th became Company D, 503rd. In late 1942 and early 1943, there was confusion about unit designations in the 503rd, as some officers interpreted the 503rd was operating with two 2nd Battalions, one in Australia and one in Great Britain/North Africa. Unlike many other airborne units, which were deployed in the European Theater of Operations (ETO), the 503rd was the first airborne regiment to fight in the Pacific, and as an independent unit.

The unit's first operation was an unopposed landing at Nadzab, in the Markham Valley, New Guinea, on 5 September 1943. Although the landings were unopposed, the troops were later attacked by enemy bombers from the air. The 503rd's deployment helped force the Japanese evacuation of a major military outpost at Lae. During their overland withdrawal, the third battalion of the 503rd had a major skirmish with the Japanese rear guard.

On 3–4 July 1944, 1st and 3rd Battalions of the 503rd were delivered by parachute to Kamiri Airfield on the island of Noemfoor off the coast of Dutch New Guinea, sustaining significant casualties from the jump. To reduce further casualties, the 2nd Battalion was delivered amphibiously. At the Battle of Noemfoor, the 503rd played a major role in the elimination of the Japanese garrison on that island. As a result of his heroic actions during the battle, paratrooper Sergeant Ray E. Eubanks was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. Airfields constructed on Noemfoor after its capture enabled the advance of Allied troops from New Guinea to the Philippines.