Firefighters Bayonet possibly?

[DarExc]

A friend of mine was looking at my dress bayonet and showed me one he got at a garage sale a few years ago for $20 Canadian and asked if it was German, I thiought it looked like a Firefighters Bayonet but it has no "eye" on the eagle head and the little nub at the end of the sheath is built into the sheath rather than attached seperate, any ideas? It also has no marks on it at all. What should I tell him is the real value?

[Billy G]

You're right, it is certainly a fireman's bayonet. Fireman's bayonets do not have the "eye" on the bird head pommel as many other dress bayonets do. This one is entirely correct including the black patent leather frog which seems to show the typical heat ccrazing these frogs often display.

I would say your friend's price of $20 Canadian is very good for the piece, value could be as high as US$50, but probably not higher considering the plate loss on the pommel and crossguard. The fact it's not maker marked makes it less valuable to a "type" collector but for someone looking for a decent representative piece, it's fine. The frog adds value as well, maybe US$20. Hope this helps.

[DarExc]

Alright, great, thanks a lot, I'll let him know tomorrow, I'm sure he'll be pleased. He had forgot all about it until I showed him my army dress bayo, he had no idea it was German either. It's funny, everyone I know always ends up having something in their basement they usually just don't know what it is.