SS Dagger with Fürth Dedication by G. Hammesfahr

German WWII > Edged Weapons > SS Daggers > SS Fürth Daggers

The well-known and respected dealer Tom Wittmann has previously described this dagger, so here it is: This dagger is one of the rarely seen and very desirable Fürth dedication examples. It is a textbook example identical to the piece I show pictures in my SS Book on Page 213, except for the maker. We see different makers with identical dedications, as the dedications were done on existing dagger blades, some even being Röhm examples. Studying the tang nut, this dagger does appear to have been ever apart. The hilt mounts are all solid nickel, being in excellent condition with smooth surfaces, crisp edges and good accent grooves. The lower reverse guard is district stamped, "III". The ebony grip is a fine example having high center ridge construction. The ridge remains crisp throughout both sides. The grip shows only the most nominal of usage, perfectly fitting the cross guards. The SS runes button is turned to about 8:00 o'clock. It has perfect enamel, with a good silvered runes and matching double circles. The nickel grip eagle is the style with beak that points slightly upward. The head and breast show mild wear, but the details are still there. A good hilt here. The scabbard shell is really nice. It is straight throughout. The anodizing is still at 100%, having about 80%-85% of the original protective lacquer evenly spread - it is rare to see a shell in this condition. The nickel scabbard mounts are good, the lower ball having a minor push-in ding in the center, but no splits or crushing. The four original nickel screws are all in place and are unturned. Just to add to the fine look, I put a vertical hanger on this piece. The hanger shows some age, but overall it is still sound. The RZM-marked snap clip shows some rust on the surface. The vintage of the hanger is a little later than the vintage of the dagger, but in my opinion, its positive effect outweighs the marriage negativity and the next owner can easily take off the vertical if it bothers him/her. The blade is still bright, but does have some smudge in a couple of places - not bad, though. There is also cross grain evident in the blade finish. This blade is in excellent plus condition. The motto, "Meine Erhe heisst Treue" is crisp and deep having a more frosted style background. The reverse is etched identical to the example I show on Page 213 of my SS book. "Gewidmet v. SS-Sportschule Fürth 1934." The etch is excellent and matches the obverse. The trademark at the ricasso consists of the double ovals which contain the firm's name and location, "Gottlieb Hammesfahr/ Solingen". In the center is the pyramid having the "+" on the obverse side. The blade shoulders perfectly meet the lower cross guard curvature. Here is a rare opportunity to acquire a Fürth Sport School dagger. There are not many of these around and when they crop up they usually find homes in the collection of an ardent SS collector. I would say that once you have acquired a good basic dagger, a fine Chained-SS dagger, it is time to look to find a Fürth example maybe before biting the bullet it takes to buy a Himmler. An excellent original example here.