I own a long dagger/short sword. The hilt is in the design of the German eagle with its wings spread out as the hand guard and in the middle of the hand guard is a swastika. The scabbard is also adorned with swastikas on the top, mid section, and bottom.

I don’t want to own this piece as I don’t want to be seen as a Nazi sympathizer or anything of the sort, but I don’t want to sell it to someone who actually is a Nazi sympathizer or something like that.

What do I do with it besides trash it? I don’t want to trash it because it’s decent quality. It’s not historic in any way (which disturbs me to think about) but it’s well made.

What can I do with it?

*The item in question is not historical

  • actionjbone
    1481·
    5 months ago

    If it’s not of historic significance? Modify it.

    Know anyone who does metal work? Ask them to change it to something interesting.

    Got a Dremel? Buff away the Nazi bits until it’s smooth metal.

    There are lots of different ways to change it!

    And if you know anyone who does leather work, they can remove or replace the nasty bits on the scabbard.

    • neidu2@feddit.nl
      45·
      5 months ago

      Seconding the dremmel approach. Worst case scenario: You destroy a nazi sword. Best case: You end up with with a cool denazified sword.

      Grind down the swastika, and change to a smaller grit to get a nice and polished finish.

      Not sure, but I think the eagle predates the nazis.

      EDIT: Nope, the eagle is also a nazi and needs a dremel. There, that’s gotta be a brand new sentence.

      EDIT2: Seems to be one of the many symbols that have been hijacked by nazis. Keep at your own risk.

      • WhiteHotaru@feddit.de
        15·
        5 months ago

        The eagle as a symbol predates the nazis - a lot. The „Reichsadler“ has been used since 800 A.D. as in the region that is now Germany:

        The Reichsadler, i. e. the German Imperial Eagle, originated from a proto-heraldic emblem that was believed to have been used by Charlemagne, the first Frankish ruler whom the Pope crowned as Holy Roman Emperor in AD 800, and derived ultimately from the Aquila, i. e. eagle standard, of the ancient Roman army.

        Edit: of course the Nazis twisted this as well. To decide, if the eagle has to go, we need more details:

        During Nazi rule, a stylised eagle combined with the Nazi swastika was made the national emblem (Hoheitszeichen) by order of Adolf Hitler in 1935.

        Despite its medieval origin, the term “Reichsadler” in common English understanding is mostly associated with this specific Nazi-era version. The Nazi Party had used a very similar symbol for itself, called the Parteiadler (“Party’s eagle”). These two insignia can be distinguished as the Reichsadler looks to its right shoulder whereas the Parteiadler looks to its left shoulder.

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reichsadler

        • davidgro@lemmy.world
          9·
          5 months ago

          Of course the swastika itself is also much older than the Nazis. They ruined plenty of otherwise fine symbolism.

    • ThatWeirdGuy1001@lemmy.worldOP
      331·
      5 months ago

      This is probably what I’m gonna end up doing.

      I was just hoping someone could come up with something that wouldn’t involve damaging anything? Idk I don’t want to damage it but I don’t want it to exist 😅

      • dhork@lemmy.worldEnglish
        811·
        5 months ago

        It’s already damaged with all of that Nazi shit, you would be fixing it by removing it all.

      • nix@midwest.socialEnglish
        20·
        5 months ago

        A craftsmen wouldn’t be damaging it, they’d be modifying it to make it more useful to you.