HJ Knife Scabbard

[JaimeH]

I just noticed that on the leather portion of my HJ knife is stamped "Made in Germany". Why would that be there? Were these scabbards used for other knifes that may have been exported? Any ideas? Thanks

[Frank Heukemes]

Dear Jaime,

These knives were produced until a long time after the war, probably they are still produced today. The marking "made in Germany" suggests that this is not made to fool collectors. I was in the German boy scouts in the seventies and my knife was the HJ-knife with "made in Germany". Apart from that another obvious difference is the "diamond", which now shows the boy scout´s lily instead of the HJ swastika for obvious reasons

So somebody must have put your HJ knife into a modern boy scout scabbard.

I will try and see if I still find my boy scout dagger and post pictures here.

Cheers, Frank

[Adrian Stevenson]

Hi Jamie, the "HJ" pattern knife was exported post war as a general scout/hiking knife. These can still be purchased in the Peak district near where I live in the UK.
A "Fleur Des Lys" emblem replaces the HJ diamond insignia. German products had to be stamped "Made in Germany" to comply with regulations imposed by the Allied powers. It could date anytime from the 1950's onwards. This stamping would not feature on an original HJ Knife. Scabbards should also be made of steel.
Hope this helps you?
Cheers, Ade.

[JaimeH]

Thanks, I kind of thought that was the case. Now I won't feel bad about painting the scabbard and using it till I find a real WWII one.