SMGO-0259 Imperial German WWI Hirschfänger Stag Handle Forestry Dress Cutlass

This is a great WWI Era German Hirschfänger Stag Handled Long Shooting Cutlass, complete with scabbard. The hilt is fit with nickel plated brass, with a slightly curved stag horn grip with three brass studs on the side. It also has a lovely “S” shaped cross guard with the form of opposed Deer’s hooves, very commonly seen on these shooting cutlasses. There is also a scallop shell guard on one side. The nickel finish shows light wear and oxidation and is in uncleaned form.

The blade has lovely etched panels on both sides, showing floral engraving as well as stands of arms.  There is also the German Imperial crown, and a banner reading M. GOTT F. KAISER U. REICH, which would be an abbreviation for Mit Gott für Kaiser und Reich (With God for Emperor and Country). This indicates it was definitely a WWI era produced example, but most likely continued in use into the Weimar period and maybe later. The blade and etch are in good condition with signs of light oxidation and wear. There is a peculiar flaw in the base metal that we can see at the ricasso area on the rear side of the blade. This seems on par with the supplier’s lack of finishing quality that we see on many of the blades from the Alcoso firm during this time.  There are no maker marks, but the blade characteristics are the same as other marked Alcoso daggers from this period. The blade length on this dagger is a ridiculous 19.5 inches, making this all the more impressive of a display piece.  The leather scabbard is in great shape with no bends or kinks. Overall, a nice addition to your Collection at a reasonable price.