Uncleaned Early Group Niederrhein NSKK Service Dagger by F. Herder

The dagger blade is uncleaned and shows spots and gray areas beneath the dirt. The burnishing is gone from the motto on the blade. The reverse ricasso bears the crossed keys maker mark of the firm of F. Herder A.S. of Solingen. The nickel guards are, like the blade and all other components, uncleaned, and show dirt and verdigris. The reverse lower guard bears the group mark of Niederrhein. The guards show relatively minor wear to the plating. The pommel screw button is without most of its plating. The wood grip shows typical indentations and carrying marks, with the grip eagle being the early nickel example. There is minor chipping to the wood grips on the obverse side just beneath the upper guard, and on the reverse side just above the lower crossguard. The SA runes button has minor chips to the enamel. The upper scabbard fitting shows copper colored discoloration on one side and it is also missing a screw on that same side. The black anodized scabbard finish is largely intact, though worn, with chips on the lower edge.