Land Customs Officer Dagger – WKC

Product Description: This Land Customs Officer’s Dagger (Reichsfinanzverwaltung Dolch für Landzoll-Beamte), produced by WKC (Weyersberg, Kirschbaum & Cie.), is a well-preserved and highly desirable example of the 1938 regulation pattern carried by officials of the German Land Customs service. Scarce and seldom encountered in such original condition, this piece would be a centerpiece addition to an advanced collection of Third Reich civil service and diplomatic edged weapons.

The blade retains its original luster and features the deeply etched and striking WKC maker’s mark. While period wear is present in the form of light runner marks and minor spotting, the blade remains very attractive overall, with only two small, honest edge burrs approximately one inch from the tip, which do not detract from  presentation.

The aluminum hilt fittings are textbook WKC manufacture, with finely hand-detailed crossguard and the distinctive upswept-winged Customs eagle. The pommel, decorated with crisp acanthus leaf motifs, displays excellent definition and patina. The leather-wrapped grip is in very good condition, with only minor high-point wear to the leather and tight, properly applied twisted aluminum wire wrap.

The scabbard is complete and free of dents, with excellent leather coverage that shows a few surface marks and color loss from wear. Both upper and lower scabbard fittings are textbook, with the correct chased line detail approximately 5mm from the edges and the desirable integral throat construction specific to WKC production.

Overall, this dagger is a scarce and highly collectible example, exhibiting the originality and integrity advanced collectors demand. With strong visual appeal, desirable maker attribution, and textbook construction throughout, this Land Customs Official’s Dagger stands as a first-rate acquisition and rates as excellent condition.

Historical Description: Civil organizations during the Third Reich included daggers among their formal regalia, and this included the Customs (Zoll) branch of law enforcement, which was organized under Nazi auspices in 1937. This organization was tasked with both border control and immigration services, with personnel securing borders and waterways as well as handling various administrative functions including tax collection. The size of the organization was around 50,000 officials. The formal dress daggers were introduced in 1937 in two different patterns, one for land customs and the other for water customs. Water customs daggers had a gold finish. Land customs daggers, when first introduced, featured metal fittings made of nickel silver. In 1938, these were replaced with aluminum metal fittings. Production of the daggers ceased in 1942. The German Customs branch was much smaller than many other military and civil branches and as a result relatively few daggers were produced; they are rare and desirable to collectors today.

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