SS Himmler Honor Dagger with Veteran Papers

German WWII > Edged Weapons > SS Daggers > SS Himmler Daggers

For those of you who want to know where this dagger has been: the veteran “Earnest P Lee” 2nd Division sold it to a “Bob Joshlin” in December 3rd 1976. Joshlin sold it to Wayne Techet around April 22nd 1992. Techet later consigned it with Tom Whittmann who sold it to a Larry Oliver around March 26th 2002. Larry Oliver later sold it to Craig Gottlieb. On April 13th 2006, my consigner purchased it from Gottlieb and now in 2020 I am offering it to you. Here is the description from Whittmann:

SS HIMMLER PRESENTATION WITH VET ACQUISITION PAPERS—Carl Eickhorn. This outstanding, textbook SS Himmler dagger is the best you could expect to acquire in this great hobby we all share. It is a dagger remaining in the absolute finest of condition. It comes with an original letter from the veteran from whom it was acquired, certifying the details of the "liberation", as well as signatures and statements of the two collectors who have owned the piece since its surfacing to the collecting community in 1976. This dagger, although it has been carefully cleaned, does not look to have been apart—at least the tang is not loose to the finger. I will respect this status, as I don't really want to risk a slip of my wrench, and accidentally scar the upper guard. It is too nice of a dagger, and besides, even an idiot can see these crossguards are the Eickhorn. Type, no doubt being marked "H.E." inside. These crossguards are completely smooth, having still-crisp edges. The accent grooves are the typical, very deeply accomplished type, we see with only Eickhorn examples. The grooves appear hand cut. The lower guard has the bench number,"2", stamped on the underside, next to the right blade shoulder edge. The ebony grip is a beauty, showing no wearing signs, and retaining its crisp lines. It shows almost no age signs—just a tiny 1/4"hairliner crack at the upper obverse surface, next to the runes button, but this is almost a "given" on these brittle ebony grips. It is a medium contoured example. The SS runes button is slightly turned to about 7:00 o'clock. The button is a flatter-surfaced type, having totally perfect enameling even looking through a loop these enameled surfaces are untouched. (This is a sign of the choice condition of this example. I doubt that it was owner worn). The nickel grip eagle is the "high-necked" version, having just a tad of wear to the bird's head area, but otherwise, the body of the raptorial animal remains crisp. This grip fits the guards perfectly throughout—nice to see as most Himmler's rarely do. The scabbard shell is a dream. The reverse is totally straight, while the obverse has just a tiny dimple to the left edge, where the hanger hardware was pressed against it somewhere along the dagger's 68 year life. It is extremely minor, however, and becomes completely trivial once the viewer digests the unbelievable preservation state of the scabbard's finish. It is difficult to not be overcome with joy! For not only is the anodizing easily at 110%, but the original factory protective lacquer remains at 99%. What a sight! Beautiful thing here, comparable to any woman. (Maybe a stretch, but if you are a real dyed-in-the-wool collector, you more than know what I mean here). The scabbard mounts are in perfect condition, to include the never-dropped, lower ball. They have that yellowy look we see with this vintage. The unturned, original nickel screws are in perfect condition. The original-to-the-piece black leather short hanger is in place. This hanger remains in perfect condition, complete with the little loop. The hardware is the nickel type, the snap clip being unmarked. The blade is a hobby wonder. It is completely mirror bright, easily retaining full 100% factory cross graining. This blade is a full mint example. The motto of the SS has been perfectly etched on the obverse, Meine Ehre heisst Trate. It is crisp, deep, and has 100% frosted backgrounding. The reverse blade has an outstanding inscription, exactly matching the backgrounding and depth of the obverse etching, as well as the trademark. For those that may not bow, (hard to believe there in anybody that doesn't know, though), but the inscription reads, In herzlicher Katnertulschaft H. Hintmler, or, "In heartfelt Companionship, H. Himmler". The reverse ricasso is matching etched with the smooth-tailed, small double-ovaled Eickhorn trade-mark. This logo was used from 1933-35. This example actually has a small trace of the rodent's eye--many Himmler examples have no eye in the squirrel, as this body part apparently was the weak portion of the etch. (This gives you an idea of the depth of the etching on this example, as the proof mark was done at the same time). The blade shoulders nicely fit the lower crossguard contour. This dagger is easily as nice as the "bagged" piece shown in Johnson's revised Volume 5, on Page 26, and is the same format as the example shown on Page 25, upper. As mentioned above, the dagger comes with a letter written by the veteran it was acquired from. The United States Army veteran was with the 2nd Division. He was detained in a small village in Germany, about three days after crossing the Remagen Bridge, with a flat tire on his motorcycle. He came across two German soldiers, biding in the home of the sister of one of them. The two men were posing as civilians having hid their uniforms in a grain bin. After discovering the uniforms and forcing the men to put them on with a resultant perfect fit, it became obvious these men were SS personnel. One soldier was an enlisted man, while the other was an SS major. The two SS men were turned over to a Quartermaster truck which came through later in the day. The dagger was confiscated at that time and returned to the States, where it remained in the possession of the veteran, Ernest P Lee, until December 3, 1976. On that day, the dagger was sold to well-known collector/dealer, Bob "Josh" Joslin, of the Seattle area. This is an outstanding opportunity to acquire something very "special" for your collection. I keep telling you guys to buy one of these, as the prices keep going up—you didn't believe me when they were $2,000.00, then $4,000.00, then $7,500, then $10,000, then $12,000 and now the nice ones are $15,000. Are you going to believe me now, or wait until they are $25,000! There is no way these daggers are going to go down. They have always been a fine investment, and I believe they will continue as such. There is no question the SS has always, and will continue to lead our hobby's desirability parade. After all, what other collectible represents the SS in their most horrible, but at the same time, historical light? It is, of course, the SS Roehm Honor dagger and the SS Himmler Honor, presentations. Here's your chance to get your piece of this fascinating pie. Unconditionally guaranteed, untouched original. Mint Mint Minus (17665)