Original Item: Only One Available. This beautiful knife has a Fairbairn Sykes style blade, it’s double edged and 6 ½ inches long, with a 4 ½ inch long antler grip. This is without a doubt a beautifully made knife that fits comfortably in your hand. The blade has very little rust on it, some tarnishing and virtually no pitting and appears to have the original edge with no signs of being resharpened. The knife is still tight in construction and has very minimal, if any movement. The scabbard is of rolled steel construction and retains approximately 95% of its original black paint. The hanging construction on the back is similar to that of a boot knife scabbard, the double prong style. The length of the scabbard is 6 ½ inches and covers the blade perfectly. The total length of the two together is 12 inches.

This is a wonderful knife and will not last long so do not miss your chance!

Measurements:

Blade Length: 6 ½ inches
Handle Length: 4 ½ inches
Total Length: 11 inches
Scabbard Length: 6 ½ inches
Combined Length: 12 inches

A trench knife is a combat knife designed to kill or incapacitate an enemy at close quarters, such as in a trench or other confined area. It was developed as a close combat weapon for soldiers attacking enemy trenches during the First World War. An example of a World War I trench knife is the German Army's Nahkampfmesser (close combat knife).

During the Second World War, the trench knife, by this time also called a combat knife, was developed into new designs. On the German side, the Nahkampfmesser and associated knives were widely issued to the ordinary soldier for combat and utility purposes, while Allied armies mostly issued trench knives to elite infantry units and soldiers not equipped with the bayonet.

With the exception of the German Nahkampfmesser or (close combat knife), most early trench knives were fabricated by hand by individual soldiers or blacksmiths for the purpose of silently killing sentries and other soldiers during trench raids. These early "trench knives" were often shortened and sharpened Army-issue bayonets. One type of stabbing weapon, the French Nail, was made by cutting and pointing the steel stakes used to support the barbed wire protecting trenches. Some historians say that some trench knives models were inspired by the Bowie knife.

Soon afterwards, these fabricated trench knives were used in defensive close-quarters trench warfare, and such fighting soon revealed limitations in existing designs.