Antique United States Krag Rifle 1903 Bayonet in Type 3 1905 Scabbard.

The rivets were not sanded down but are worn down from time and use, with the date stamped on the ricasso and the letters "US" on the other side. 

Condition: Heavy rust on scabbard, but intact. Commensurate with age. 

Size: 3 1/2 x 18 x 2 1/2 in. 

The Krag bayonet was invented to accompany the The Krag-Jørgensen repeating bolt-action rifle designed by the Norwegians Ole Herman Johannes Krag and Erik Jørgensen in the late 1880s. It was adopted as a standard arm by Norway, Denmark, and the United States in an effort to better match the magazine capacity and design of rival nations, and although it was replaced by the M1903 Springfield the bayonet continued to see service for nearly seventy years due to its ease of use, longevity, and the design of the scabbard for attachment to multiple types of rifles. The Krag rifles themselves even saw use in World War II, as some volunteers who had served in World War I brought their own standard issue rifles to the early days of the fighting before the United States ramped up production on newer, better armaments. While the bayonet was considered perfect for field combat and other uses, the scabbard went through several variations, primarily due to issues with the belt hook. The first version could rotate 360 degrees on the body stud, which resulted in many complaints that the scabbard could accidentally turn upside down and dump the bayonet out. In 1899 the belt hook was modified with a wide pivoting wire keeper, but there were further complaints that although it improved reliability and strengthened its connection to the rifle it was extremely difficult to put on and take off, making it less than ideal for the strenuous conditions of wartime when it would most be needed. A final variant was produced in 1905 with a narrow pivoting wire, but it saw little service in the Regular Army as the Springfield had been adopted by then. However, the Militia and Navy continued to use it up into the Vietnam War, as the bayonet design worked well with the M1903 Springfield and later official issue rifles. Today, the earliest and final versions are extremely rare, with the middle ones the most common.

Heavy rust on scabbard, but intact. Commensurate with age. 

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