Original Item: Only One Available. This is something we have never had before! German Diplomatic Official's daggers are exceedingly rare on the market, and we have very rarely even seen one, much less had one. The design is VERY similar to the rare Government Official's dagger, however the Diplomatic dagger is estimated to be TEN TIMES as rare!

The NSDAP was all about symbols, and edged weapons have a long history of being presented as a sign of station. This is a very nice circa 1940 example of an NSDAP Diplomatic Official's dagger with the correct scabbard, made by the Solingen-based firm of Alexander Coppel & Co. KG, Stahlwarenfabrik.

The dagger features a hilt fit with silver plated brass or tombac alloy, which was originally antiqued to give it a great look. The pommel is a lovely Art Deco style eagles head, and the cross guard shows a Reichsadler Eagle with upturned wing ends and a head facing to the viewers RIGHT. If it was facing left, it would be a government official's dagger, which is the only difference between the two. The grip scales look to be acrylic or celluloid pearloid material, and are in very good condition, showing a bit of age and wear, with the right side scale looking to have been worn through a bit next to the ferrule, which looks like a chip in the pictures. The hilt as a whole has much of the silver plating retained, with some wear through to the base material, particularly on the cross guard obverse, and is still tight on the tang.

The excellent condition blade is bright throughout, showing the original cross grain throughout the blade surface. This texture is iconic, and is the definitive identifying characteristic for a real WWII German Blade. The needle-like tip is intact and unbent, and the edges have correctly not been sharpened. There is the usual runner wear on the blade surface, however this is present on just about every dagger out there, and this is all that keeps it from being truly MINT! This is really a great blade! The felt blade washer is still intact and in place inside the cross guard.

The reverse ricasso is etched with the trademark Alcoso used in 1939-1940. It depicts the scales with the firm's initials, ACS interspersed. Above is the firm's name, ALCOSO, and below the town of business, SOLINGEN, the legendary "City of Blades" in Western Germany.

Alcoso was originally a trade name of Alexander Coppel & Co. KG, Stahlwarenfabrik, located in Solingen, the legendary German "City of Blades." The company was a major manufacturer of edged weapons and tools from the end of the 19th century up until the WWII period. Unfortunately, as NSDAP-control increased, brothers Carl Gustav and Dr. Alexander Coppel, the Jewish owners of the firm, were forced out. In 1936 the firm had been "Aryanized", and started using the name ALCOSO to hide the Jewish family name. By the end of 1936 the brothers were ejected from their Solingen offices, and by 1940 the brand trademark initials ACS were changed to AWS to reflect the change in ownership and name: Alexander Coppel Solingen to Alcoso-Werk Solingen. Carl Gustav Coppel committed suicide in Solingen in 1941, and Dr. Alexander Coppel was arrested in 1942 and sent to Theresienstadt Prison camp, where he died August 5th 1942. For more information please see J. Anthony Carter's book, GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS.

The scabbard is a fine dent-free plated steel example, with no bends we can detect. The plating however has worn away except on the top area protected by the cross guard, so this dagger looks to have seen a good amount of use. There is now a lightly oxidized patina over a lot of the scabbard, with some of the original plating retained in the recessed areas. The sides have very crisp, finely pebble-grained panels. The alloy carrying bands have an excellent pattern of overlapping oak leaves and acorns, with hand enhancing evident on each of the leaves. The ring ferrules are the triple serrated type, and the rings are still present.  The throat is the narrow style, retained by "cheese head" screws on the narrow sides of the scabbard.

A fantastic example of an exceedingly hard to find German Diplomatic Official's dagger! The first we have ever had to offer, and we will likely not have another anytime soon! Ready to research and display!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 10 1/4"
Blade Style: Spear Point Dagger
Overall length: 14 1/2“
Crossguard: 2 7/8”
Scabbard Length: 11 1/4"