Ss Indian Legion

[W. C. Stump]

Here are pictures that I took many years ago of a most unusual item it is a Gurka style knife from the SS Indian Legion.

[W. C. Stump]

Opposite Side

The inscription on the opposide side of the blade.

[Nimble1]

Wow

Bill, that must be quite a rare piece!!

[Adrian Stevenson]

Hi Bill, do you have any history about this Kukri? I must admit that I am very skeptical about it, given the late date of the incorporation of the Indian Legion into the Waffen SS, and official indifference to the unit. To me it bears the hallmarks of a 1960/70's fantasy item i.e. a fairly common item with added etching.
Cheers, Ade.

[W. C. Stump]

Hi Bill, do you have any history about this Kukri? I must admit that I am very skeptical about it, given the late date of the incorporation of the Indian Legion into the Waffen SS, and official indifference to the unit. To me it bears the hallmarks of a 1960/70's fantasy item i.e. a fairly common item with added etching.
Cheers, Ade.

I remember it well. The blade was in the collection of my dear departed friend Basil Harr, pioneer collector of some of the worlds finest items of WWI and WWII Germany. I took the photographs of this item in 1965. He had the item for many years before that. It came in a green scabbard and had an ivory handle. Weather it was an early fake or original I had no way to determine, but in the end Basil's house and collection was destroyed in a terrible fire. The last that I ever heard about the blade was that it was salvaged from the ashes and sold to a private collector. Where it is today is unknown to me.