[Stephanie Maks]

I apologize if this isn't the correct area for this - It's an historical weapon though, so I'm hoping I got it right.

I have a trench knife that I acquired several years ago from a dealer in the UK. It is obviously a cut-down job, and from the appearance it looks like it was done without much concern for appearance. The blade is 4 1/2 inches long, including a 1/2 inch ricasso. The knife is very heavy for its size, and the weight is all in the handle - the centre of balance in fact is right around the middle rivet. When first holding this knife, it feels like it 'wants' to do some thrusting. It would also be suitable I think for some 'bashing' using the heel of the handle - it's solid steel there.

At first appearance it looks to me to be a cut-down bayonette - the guard appears to have been cut off, on the back-side where I can imagine would have been a loop to go over the end of a rifle barrel. However, there are no slots, connections, or any indications at all, at the end of the handle - nothing to show anything was cut off, and the older bayonettes that I am familiar with usually have a slot or a catch or something there, to lock or secure the bayonette to the gun. This leaves me a bit confused - The shape and weight of it, and where part of the guard is clearly missing, makes me think bayonette but there's no clips or attachment areas at the back that would secure it.

The ricasso is marked on one side with the words "CARL EICKHORN" and "SOLINGEN". There are no other markings, stamps, proof-marks, etc. anywhere on it. There is an "N" (or maybe a "Z") scratched into the metal at the end of the handle. Overall, it has a very nice patina and the blade is somewhat sharp, including about 1 inch of sharpened false-edge on the back of the blade. The tip is not overly sharp, but there's so much weight in the thrust that I think it would be a nasty stabber even without a needle-sharp tip.

If anyone could offer some information or suggestions as to the original style or design or intention of this knife, or an idea of when it was made, I would be most grateful.

Thanks very much!

[Sa'ar Nudel]

Well, converted weapons are pretty covered by literature. They can be regarded as part of what is called "theater knives" family, knives that were constructed or modified by soldiers during conflicts or on the borders. Sometimes a conversion can be officially made in an arsenal, privately-made conversions are hard to document because they tend to be on-of-a-kind. Fortunately, there are a lot of them around, mostly beginning at WWI and reaching a peak at WWII, naturally. Every major conflict had its own share of theater made knives.
Your item is not a bayonet although a close relative. This is one model out of several bayonet-like knives that were issued in Germany during a period of approximately 20 years, roughly from 1920 to 1940+. Knife has been issued to several branches in the army and in the civil service, most famous is the firefighting force.
This family is known as "eagle head" because of the shape of the pommel, true bayonet has a press button which strongly resembles an eagle's eye and a slot near the guard. For itself the guad may be single sided or double, 's' shaped. Your knife has a very short blade, crudely ground, this may indicate a broken blade reground by an un-experienced person. Eickhorn is a high quality maker, one of the few top-end makers of Solingen, Germany. The firm still exists.

One example here: http://www.oakleafmilitaria.com/images/082ew5-1.jpg