Ordered a Kershaw Golden Dagger 3pc set made by Wingen/Othello of Solingen Germany, (vintage late 1980's/early 1990's)...

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

I've been looking at them for a few years now. At times I thought about acquiring the Eagle model. Then, other times, I thought that maybe I liked the Bear model more. I've even thought about maybe getting the Boar model instead.
In the end, I actually wound up not purchasing any of them... Well, that is, until now.
While perusing online today, I found a very fair price for a set of all three of them.
I couldn't pass them up, (well, I could, but I didn't). Yup, I finally pulled the trigger

Kershaw had these collector/presentation knives made in Solingen Germany for them by the Anton Wingen company, which are the makers of the Othello brand.

Anyhow, the blades are made of forged stainless steel, with handles made of solid cast brass and black micarta.

I'm excited about getting them and being able to add them into my eclectic collection of "Interesting Objects"

Here is the picture of the knives from the vendor's website...


Here is a video with some history of the company in Solingen Germany that made these knives for Kershaw... (Update: the Wingen/Othello firm had actually went defunct in the late 1990's, with the current owners of the name brand simply making kitchen products in Asia)...

 

[akguy59]

Those look great. Also thank you for all the recent threads about your purchase. I always enjoy your latest purchases.

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

Those look great. Also thank you for all the recent threads about your purchase. I always enjoy your latest purchases.

Appreciate that, Sir!
I enjoy sharing my acquisitions
I also try to share little tid bits of information that I discover about them so that it may help others out if/when they ever stumble upon my threads

 

[jeepin]

Those are awesome!

 

[goldie]

Ive always liked these Solingen brands, like Othello, Harpkoff, Diefenthal, Linder,Eye, the list goes on and on.

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

Those are awesome!

Thanks, I have never actually seen or handled one in person, but the pictures online have drawn my attention.

The knife vendor I ordered the set from, only had the three knives in one group photo of all three. But, the description did say that a wood and glass display was also included in the deal, (but no picture was shared of the display).

But, I went onto another online website where they had pics of the same 3 model knives in one display case.

I'm hoping the display I get is the same

 

[Legendary_Jarl]

very nice!

 

[riversidedep]

I have all three of those knives. They are very nice. The eagle and bear knife came with individual display cases from the manufacturer. I don't have the display case for the boar.

I've had them for about 15 years and always intended to display them, but so far they just live in my safe.

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

I have all three of those knives. They are very nice. The eagle and bear knife came with individual display cases from the manufacturer. I don't have the display case for the boar.

I've had them for about 15 years and always intended to display them, but so far they just live in my safe.

Awesome!
Hope this thread gives you that little reminder that you need to get them displayed

I found an older auction sale of one of these knives where it stated that these were being sold in the range of $300 per knife back when they were first being offered. I don't know if that is correct, but I paid considerably less than $300 per knife for these 3 specimens. If the vendor's description is accurate, they having listed them as being in mint condition, then I'd say I got myself an awesome deal.

I don't know if I will receive them on Monday or Tuesday, but they are coming in from a knife dealer out of Boise Idaho, (my living on the Northern East Coast). I guess they have been in business for decades. They had been located in California before moving to their current location in Idaho.

I must say, although I've never dealt with them before, so far I'm loving their quality of service.
I ordered them at around 4 or 5pm yesterday evening, (Friday), and within just a couple or so hours, they had sent me my pre-shipment USPS tracking info.
I expected that pre shipping info would linger through the weekend until Monday, when I would guess they'd actually get it into USPS hands, but... I received notification from the USPS that it was in their hands and on route already. Like, wow, that is right on the money for quick service! Because of their quick shipping, I may actually receive the knives by this coming Monday or Tuesday.

My looking through their website, they sell all sorts of knives, and are not shy about having good quality items. In fact, all they seem to carry is quality stuff.
Again, it's my first time dealing with them, but so far I'm very impressed! Now to see how the rest of the transaction goes.

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

I would love to be able to track down an internet page having some pictures of late 80's/early 90's Kershaw catalog pages that maybe feature these knives.

In the meantime, I was able to find some information that Kershaw put out about these knives when they first got offered in late 1980's/early 1990's. It's obviously more than just history about the knives, but their sales pitch as well. So, one has to understand that while reading it

Kershaw's "Original" Golden Eagle Bayonet Dagger...
Originally manufactured by the world famous cutlers of Solingen , Germany , this striking bayonet dagger was designed as a ceremonial weapon for the German military. In the late 1930's the government confiscated the forging dies, equipment, and even the drawings used for the golden eagle, so that it's factories can be converted to support the pre war build up of aircraft and ship parts.After the war, British occupational forces seized the warehouses which held the golden eagle's tooling. As the years passed, the golden eagle was lost to time and the ravages of war. The tooling was rediscovered and released in 1988, when it became available to Kershaw Knives for our limited edition of 5000 Knives. Thus, Kershaw's golden eagle bayonet dagger is not a reproduction, but truly an authentic recreation of the original work made with the rediscovered tooling, and once again hand forged and finished by the master craftsmen of Solingen , Germany .Its full tang blade is forged of the highest quality stainless steel, serial numbered, and then mirror polished before the "Golden Eagle" identification is engraved and gold filled. The decorative eagles head and guard are cast in brass as a single piece and fitted with black micarta scales. With precision manufacturing and meticulous care, Kershaw limited edition Golden eagle Bayonet dagger is indeed a masterful recreation of a remarkable pre World War 2 German ceremonial knife.

Kershaw Golden Bear...
This Kershaw golden bear dagger was created to commemorate a rare and magnificent bear taken in the 1920's in the Carpathian Mountains of Hungary and Romania . Its designer owned a knife factory in Solingen Germany where this knife was originally made.

Kershaw Golden Boar...
This is a re-creation of a WWI German Officer's Elite "Special Forces" Dagger. It is made of genuine Solingen steel made from the original dies.

 

[The Mastiff]

I have a couple Anton Wingen "Othello" knives. A couple fixed blades I bought used and an Italian style auto I bought in Germany in 81 or thereabouts and carried the whole time I was stationed there. It's still in good condition. I was fortunate enough to be able to buy another Othello auto here from a very good guy and it's a near twin of my old one except for color.

Othello was a good maker and certainly knew cutlery. You have a group of knives that will never be made again especially for any reasonable price. You did well Pocketknifejimmy ! Enjoy those beautiful knives.

Joe

 

[jfk1110]

Very cool. Looking forward to seeing your pictures once.in your possession!!

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

I have a couple Anton Wingen "Othello" knives. A couple fixed blades I bought used and an Italian style auto I bought in Germany in 81 or thereabouts and carried the whole time I was stationed there. It's still in good condition. I was fortunate enough to be able to buy another Othello auto here from a very good guy and it's a near twin of my old one except for color.

Othello was a good maker and certainly knew cutlery. You have a group of knives that will never be made again especially for any reasonable price. You did well Pocketknifejimmy ! Enjoy those beautiful knives.

Joe

Thank you!

If I'm not mistaken, I believe AG Russell used to contract the Othello maker in Germany to produce some of AG Russell' forged steel daggers. They now offer a version of them, but now made in Taiwan.
The new Taiwan versions are brush satin finished, while the vintage German ones were highly polished. The polished finish German versions just seemed to look so much classier

I don't have enough German made knives in my collection, so these three incoming pieces will help up that count a wee bit for me. Solingen was known as such a great knife region of the world, but is now just a shell of what it was, (as far as knife making goes), when compared to it's heyday...
But, there is always the vintage items out there waiting to be taken in and admired by their new owners

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

Othello seems to still be an ongoing brand name, so the company is likely still active, but... From what I have found online, they are mostly a maker of pots, pans, kitchen knives, and other kitchen products.
Makes me wonder if they still produce hunting knives and such? If not, I wonder when they finally made the decision to cut that production?

I guess it's like this Wusthof folding knife that I have, which is probably about 75 to 80 years old. Apparently Wusthof was a major producer of pocket knives at one time, but now they are usually known for making quality Kitchen knives and other kitchen accessories.

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

One of the coolest things I find about collecting, especially vintage items, is researching a product's history.
I tried finding out if the Anton Wingen company in Solingen Germany, (famous for their Othello branded knives), was still in business and still making knives under their brand(s) and under contract for others. It turned up a cloudy answer for me. I mean, I was able to find out that, yes, the Othello brand name lives on, but it seems to have moved on from sportsman's type knives, to kitchen pots, pans, and other kitchen related accessories, (including kitchen knives).
Well, I found a video on youtube that had the late A.G. Russell explaining how he lost the Anton Wingen/Othello Company connection back during the late 1990's. He had had contracts with them to manufacture some of his A.G. Russell' knives. It seems that after the owner of the Anton Wingen company passed away, it went under, or at least it ceased being what it used to be, and the name brand got sold off.
So, for all practical purposes, we can pretty much include the Anton Wingen Company as another defunct Cutlery firm.

 

[dirc]

I would love to be able to track down an internet page having some pictures of late 80's/early 90's Kershaw catalog pages that maybe feature these knives.

In the meantime, I was able to find some information that Kershaw put out about these knives when they first got offered in late 1980's/early 1990's. It's obviously more than just history about the knives, but their sales pitch as well. So, one has to understand that while reading it

Kershaw's "Original" Golden Eagle Bayonet Dagger...
Originally manufactured by the world famous cutlers of Solingen , Germany , this striking bayonet dagger was designed as a ceremonial weapon for the German military. In the late 1930's the government confiscated the forging dies, equipment, and even the drawings used for the golden eagle, so that it's factories can be converted to support the pre war build up of aircraft and ship parts.After the war, British occupational forces seized the warehouses which held the golden eagle's tooling. As the years passed, the golden eagle was lost to time and the ravages of war. The tooling was rediscovered and released in 1988, when it became available to Kershaw Knives for our limited edition of 5000 Knives. Thus, Kershaw's golden eagle bayonet dagger is not a reproduction, but truly an authentic recreation of the original work made with the rediscovered tooling, and once again hand forged and finished by the master craftsmen of Solingen , Germany .Its full tang blade is forged of the highest quality stainless steel, serial numbered, and then mirror polished before the "Golden Eagle" identification is engraved and gold filled. The decorative eagles head and guard are cast in brass as a single piece and fitted with black micarta scales. With precision manufacturing and meticulous care, Kershaw limited edition Golden eagle Bayonet dagger is indeed a masterful recreation of a remarkable pre World War 2 German ceremonial knife.

Kershaw Golden Bear...
This Kershaw golden bear dagger was created to commemorate a rare and magnificent bear taken in the 1920's in the Carpathian Mountains of Hungary and Romania . Its designer owned a knife factory in Solingen Germany where this knife was originally made.

Kershaw Golden Boar...
This is a re-creation of a WWI German Officer's Elite "Special Forces" Dagger. It is made of genuine Solingen steel made from the original dies.

there is a cool thing called the wayback machine -> here is kershaw's website & folding knives from 2000 : ) enjoy

Kershaw Knives - Pocket Knives

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

I received my three knives today, and.... I'm so very pleased with this acquisition!

The knives are truly beautiful, just love the mirror polished forged steel blades, and the micarta is also really well executed.


I've included some pictures of the knives below. The pictures may seem to show grayish areas on some of the brass handle components, but it's just the angles or something that the pics were taken at because there is no gray on them at all... It's just steel, brass, and micarta

I also shared below a picture of the info from the vendor's website, which the vendor printed a copy of and sent it along with my knives
This three knife package deal cost me $299 + $14 S&H, (for a total of $314)... This was truly an absolute steal of a deal!
This purchase did also include the original Kershaw walnut and glass display case, which was made to house all three of the knives.
Doing the simple math to break down each knife's individual cost to me... I basically paid $100 for each one of the knives, got the display case for free, and paid $14 for shipping... Not too shabby at all!
While some deals can be had on these by having a little patience and doing some good online searching, these knives do currently average in the $200-$250 range for each individual knife.
Again, I scored a heck of a deal on this package!


So, yes, I truly could not be any happier with this latest purchase of mine... Two big thumbs up!


Btw, the dealer that sold me the knife was absolutely awesome! Items were obviously as described, (mint), with them actually having surpassed my expectations. They also shipped them out lickity split! And, they really took special care in packaging everything up properly. The glass on the display is real glass, not plexiglas, but their careful packaging almost guaranteed it would arrive to me safely
I may use this original display for these knives, but will likely apply Renascence Wax to the blades first, which I just ordered some of.

The info I often read about these knives is that the blades are made of hand forged stainless steel... But, I believe that the Wingen/Othello company was had incorporated hot Drop Forging to make their knives. In any case, they are in fact forged steel.

 

[jeepin]

I received my three knives today, and.... I'm so pleased with this acquisition!

The knives are truly beautiful, just love the mirror polished forged steel blades

I've included some pictures of them below. The pictures may seem to show grayish areas on some of the brass handle components, but it's just the angles or something that the pics were taken at because there is no gray on them at all... It's just steel, brass, and micarta

I also shared below a picture of the info from the vendor's website, which the vendor printed a copy of and sent it along with my knives
This three knife package deal cost me $299 + $14 S&H, ($314 total)... This was truly and absolutely a steal of a deal!
It also did in fact come with the original Kershaw walnut and glass display case that houses all three knives.
Doing the math by breaking the purchase down to each knife's individual cost... I basically paid $100 for each one of the knives, received the display case for free, and paid the $14 for S&H... Not too shabby!
While some deals can be had with a little patience and some good searching, currently each of these knives are averaging in the $200-$250 range.
So, again, I scored a heck of a deal on this package!


Yes, I truly could not be any happier with this latest purchase of mine... Two big thumbs up!


The dealer that sold me the knife was absolutely awesome! Items were obviously as described, even surpassing my expectations. They shipped it out lickity split! And they really took care in packaging everything up properly. The glass on the display is real glass, not plexiglas, but their careful packaging almost guaranteed it would arrive to me safely


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I’m so jealous.

 

[PocketKnifeJimmy]

I’m so jealous.

That obviously being a nice kudos from you about my acquisition of these knives, I want to thank you, Sir, for it

Since Wingen/Othello had went out of business in the late 1990's, (after it's owner had passed away), it places my set of knives as being made during the last years of their "made in Solingen Germany" run.
I'm very glad to have these nice representations of the quality work they were still able to do towards the end of the 20th Century.

Thank you again, Sir

 

[jeepin]

That obviously being a nice kudos from you about my acquisition of these knives, I want to thank you, Sir, for it

Since Wingen/Othello had went out of business in the late 1990's, (after it's owner had passed away), it places my set of knives being made during the last years of their made run in being Solingen Germany made products.
I'm very glad to have these nice representations of the quality work they were still able to do towards the end of the 20th Century.

Thank you again, Sir

I’ve never heard of this company before you posted these, Definitely a great partnership between Kershaw and them.

I really love seeing Vintage Kershaws like this.