Hi Folks,

I was hoping to tap into the combined wisdom of this site, to help shed some light on a sword of mine. I have very little information regarding the piece. My aunt passed it along, telling me she thought it was a "WWI German Officers Sword". I took a look online and could not find an exact match. The grip seems to be a different shape, and the hilt components on my piece are black where others are gold.

Things of note that may not be apparant in the pics below...

-The hilt is hinged.

-Overall length is approx 34"

-Blade Width is approx 7/8"

-Blade Length is 28"

-The string on the scabbard does not appear to be part of the piece

Anyway, thats about all I got...thanks in advance for any advice you can offer!

Hello,

It is a Prussian M1889 Infantry officers sword. Originally the hilts were made of gilded brass, but due to shortages during WWI gilded steel began to be used. This is out of my area of expertise, the black paint may be original, but I doubt it. In some photos there does appear to be steel, gilding, and then paint. The scabbards were generally painted black. The price is generally around $300-$350 although some examples (dependent of condition) may reach $400, poor examples can be found for $100.

Your aunt was correct.

Cheers,

Hadrian

Thank you, Hadrian!

...I knew someone here would know what it was.

I'll have to dig a little deeper, to find out about the black paint vs. gilded steel.

Thanks again...and I'll let my aunt know she was correct!

The maker mark is that of Pack, Ohliger & Co. of Solingen, in operation from 1905-1925.