German dagger with Sterling Dogs Head Handle

[Bucklebuilder]

Good morning. I was directed to hear from another site for some help in identification. I have what is a German RZM WWII dagger with of all things, a sterling dogs head handle retrofit. I believe by the markings that it was 935 or 93.5% silver which would be Argentium. My research shows that that was only developed in 1990. Would like to hear your thoughts on the hallmarks. I thought at first maybe a souvenir later retrofitted by an English silver Smith, but I’m not sure.

Reads: 935 Sterling AS * St:

Thank you.

[AG2012]

Hi,
Welcome to the forum.
You wrote ``German RZM WWII dagger``
Reichszeugmeisterei organization, also known as RZM; the mark is here with code number for Artur Schuttelhofer & Co Solingen - Wald (blade maker).



Cannot help much with your dagger, but it`s not German RZM WWII dagger.
Regards

[Bucklebuilder]

Thanks much for your reply and welcome!

The blade is marked: RZM 7/9
Code: SMF Solinger Metallwaffenfabrik Stoeker & Co.,Solingen

If it is not a WWII, what era would you suggest its from?

Thanks!

[dragonflywink]

'935' is a fairly common fineness in German silver, indicating 93.5% silver in the alloy - while Argentium can be either .935 or .960 fineness, what makes it Argentium is the replacement of some of the copper in the alloy with germanium...

~Cheryl

[AG2012]

Hello again,
OK, RZM is genuine (not seen in the first post).
Dating after 1934.
Are there any marks on the sheath ?
I am not familiar with German military daggers, have seen several, but nothing like this.Possibly the handle was added to the blade.
Regards

[Joerg]

Sorry for my ignorance, where is the 935 mark? And for me, the marking on the handle look arabic. Am I going in a wrong direction?
Regards, Jörg

[Bucklebuilder]

Cheryl, thank you for the info!

AG2012; If you read my introductory paragraph, it alludes to fact that the handle is a retrofit. It was either added in Germany, England, who knows? I thought that a picture of the dagger stamp was insignificant at the time. My apologies for the confusion. I’m not sure about the sheath. I’m trying to actually help somebody out. I can find out, but it does look similar to the sheaths that these knives were originally issued with minus the chain.

My concern is not the knife. I’m just curious about the hallmarks on the handle. The handle mated with the knife Will likely remain a mystery.

[Bucklebuilder]

Sorry for my ignorance, where is the 935 mark? And for me, the marking on the handle look arabic. Am I going in a wrong direction?
Regards, Jörg

It’s the first mark to the left on the first picture. I’m not sure if you are honestly. I’m here to learn about the hallmarks myself. I appreciate your input.

[Bucklebuilder]

I’m having difficulty editing. I am not curious as to how they handle and the knife came to be a union. I’m only curious about the hallmarks and I should’ve stated such in the title.

Thanks

[Goldstein]

Hi Bucklebuilder -

the blade is an original blade for one of the countless daggers carried by the different national sozialist organisations. Exact measures can reveal which one - there are sites where these objects are discussed.
The rest is "homemade" and has nothing to do with the blade.
Here an time correct example from the SA - there were many others...



Regards
Goldstein

[Bucklebuilder]

Hi Bucklebuilder -

the blade is an original blade for one of the countless daggers carried by the different national sozialist organisations. Exact measures can reveal which one - there are sites where these objects are discussed.
The rest is "homemade" and has nothing to do with the blade.
Here an time correct example from the SA - there were many others...



Regards
Goldstein

Thank you for your input. Most of that if not all has been established. I’m in the process of trying to figure out how to edit my title. I’m only interested in the hallmarks on the handle but the forum rules require pictures of the whole item. Thanks again!

Matt