Measuring 39 1/4 inches in overall length, the design of the swords follows the overall pattern for an Imperial German Artillery Officer, though with a level of embellishment far beyond the norm. At the heart of the weapon is the 33 3/4 inch Damascus steel blade, featuring a rolled spine leading up to the flared 10 inch false edge. The lower 13 1/2 inches of blade are decorated with acid etching and a strong gold wash, with a laurel vine on the spine, the Weyersberg logo on the left ricasso, and the merchant marking of "H.KARGUTH/BERLIN" on the obverse. Martial decorations are present on both sides of the blade, with the left side marked in a banner "EISENHAUER/DAMAST-STAHL" (Iron Hewer, designating a high quality weapon capable of demolishing a lesser blade wholesale, and Damascus Steel) near the ricasso, and a banner on the right reading "Huhe s/l. Schlutig,/Kriegsschule Neisse 1895", suggesting that the recipient was either a student or a graduate of the Prussian War School in Niesse, Silesia. The hilt is finely sculpted gilt brass, with "GESCHUTZES/MUSTER" on top of the guard, raised oak leaf patterns on several components and a wire wrapped sharkskin grip. The right languet is decorated with a pair of crossed cannons surrounded with tufts of laurel and set on a beaded background, and the left languet showing a crowned tilting helm atop a blank shield; except for the crown and the blankness of the shield, this is a standard "burgher's arms", as used in Germany by people well connected enough to receive arms but not enough to merit promotion to nobility. A sculpted three-dimensional panther's head serves as the rear quillion, with floral scroll designs up the back of the grip leading to an attractive red-eyed lion's head pommel. The scabbard is unusual, in that instead of being made of brass, iron, or leather, it appears to be a black painted aluminum; while today aluminum is regarded as an inexpensive construction material, before the widespread adoption of the Hall-Heroult process (developed in the late 1880s) and cheap electrification, aluminum was competitive with gold and silver as a precious metal, making this sheath a display of wealth on-par with the rest of the sword, in spite of it's mundane appearance. The date on the blade is also of note, as a young officer graduating the academy in 1895 could have been a mid-ranked officer, perhaps even a General, in the Imperial German Army at the outbreak of the First World War.

Very good. The blade shows some mild pitting, concentrated in the upper third of the blade near the tip, with strong and detailed etching, over 90% of the original gold wash, and a strong and attractive Damascus pattern. The hilt is excellent, with 70% of the original gold finish, an attractive mustard patina on the visible brass, and top-quality detail in all the embellishment. Mild wear is visible on the grip, with a few sections of loose wire. The refurbished sheath is fair, with a quantity of dents and dings that suggest active field use; the black paint is a later addition, a compromise by a man unwilling to discard a perfectly good scabbard, but wise enough to recognize that a bright, shiny, attention-grabbing piece of metal on his hip was not in his best interests. An excellent example of the Solingen blade arts, worthy of a place in any edged weapon collection.