Measuring 19 5/8 inches in overall length, this hunting knife is a fine showcase of the arts of the German blade maker and silversmith. While hunting in Germany was the purview of nobility in olden times and the wealthy in later years, there is a great deal of variety in hunter's sidearms, running the gamut from the austere, businesslike weapons of the professional hunter or forester, up to the fine arms carried by the actual landowners, of which this could be considered a top example. The blade is 12 3/4 inches long, lacks a makers mark or artist's signature, and while the etched vinework on the spine and 9 inch long panels of floral scroll and armament-themed decoration are well in line with European styles, the blade geometry has more in common with the American Bowie knife than a conventional German spear-point blade with a 3 3/4 inch back clip, "saber-style" cross-section and a subtle hollow grind leading up to the front edge. At the center of the hilt is a one-piece stag horn grip, the de-facto standard for a German hunting sidearm, but everything around it is made of three-dimensionally sculpted solid silver with the languet showing a cut-through design of a stag head resting on a pair of huntsman's horns as well as the post-1886 national silver mark (crescent moon, crown, "800"). The guard has a stand of trees in the center with a running boar and running stag as the rear and front quillions, respectively. The grip ferrule is a wrap-around scene of the climax of a bore hunt, the animal brought down by the dogs and the hunter about to strike with his spear. The pommel cap shows a fight between a boar and three dogs, one dog cast to the ground and the other two with their teeth firmly planted in the boar's neck. The knife blade is of full tang construction with the tail end of the tang just barely visible within the mouth of the boar on the pommel cap. The sheath is constructed from solid silver, with the national silver marks repeated on the throat, a facing of fine green leather on the front and back, and four wrap-around bands of three dimensionally sculpted oak leaves with raised acorns. While no hard documentation is available, the complete absence of visible maker's marks suggests a blade prepared for exhibition at a top-tier blade display in Solingen or a similar arms capitol, where clear identification would be avoided to reduce the risk of judicial bias.

Excellent. Some light spotting is visible on the blade concentrated towards the tip, with some mild handling marks and sharp etching. The hilt is excellent with an attractively varied patina to the silver components, well-aged overall with a near-black patina in the lower sections putting the already deep carving and sculpting into greater contrast. Similar coloration is present on the sheath fittings with a few light scuffs on the leather. A cornerstone piece for a quality collection of German edged weapons, hunting paraphernalia, or silver art.