What's your newest militaria III

I know a collector who has several genuine ones (different makers) for about 35 euros . If you are interested I can get you in touch with him .

 

And another traffic-control baton from the Eastern Front. It was so cheap I just couldn't resist it......

 

A receipt for sending money from a Finnish SS-volunteer office to a Finnish soldier in action...

 

Excellent rundt Martin, it is nice to have one with some of the wood left.

Good paperwork too Kai, you don't find these every day

 

Bought this lamp made in Holland. I think the German soldiers kept the light on by a swinging hand motion. No batteries.

 

In Dutch is called a "Knijpkat", it was used by civilians as a result of the regulations about the use of light by the Dutch Government. All had to be dark so the Allied Bombercrews couldn't navigate on lights. This was called "Verduistering".

 

Verdunkeln in German : this is the poster they used

 

A lucky strike!!!! A pouch for the UD M-42 double magazine!







Another BC-1000, this one came with a HS-30 Headset, a Handset, a T-17 Microphone and a LS-7 Loudspeaker.













Another Resonator M-356 to complete the mine detector kit.






A mess kit.





A TL-29 Linesman knife






M-1943 Officers Short Overcoat.

 

Some sweet additions there, you don't find that pouch every day

 

After Skylinedrive's spectacular acquisitions, I'm embarrassed to put this here : but it just shows the variety of militaria collecting....

My latest little bag of dug-up relics from Volgograd just arrived and as usual it's fun trying to identify some of them.

This is a sturdy alloy item and almost looked like a wheel or small pulley of some sort......



But no - 'Gewurz' is German for 'Spice'. Some quick Googling under 'Wehrmacht Spice Container' rapidly provided the answer - this is the lid to a large alloy canister which was once an integral part of a 'Gulaschkanone' - a German Field Kitchen. The markings are very clear.....



70 years ago this sad little relic trundled across Russia before being lost at Stalingrad.

 

That's a lovely relic Martin! Nothing to be ashamed off. Sometimes the little unspectacular finds behold more charms then the rarest of the hen's teeth!

 

That's a nice "soup spitter" relic Martin!

 

On the 7th of december 1944 the 70th Tank Battalion began it's road march from the Hürtgen Forest to Luxembourg. On the 9th all the companies had arrived in situ, except for the Assault Gun Platoon that only arrived on the 11th of december.

Battalion Headquarters and HQ. Company were quartered in a school in Luxembourg City's Belair quarter. Wagman's Sevice Company was installed in an abandoned Wehrmacht camp in Schrassig, to the south-east of Luxembourg City. The fighting companies were spread out behind the 4th Infantry Division front, which ran from Echternach down south along the Sûre and Moselle rivers to Schengen, where Luxembourg, Germany and France meet.


Able company was in the vicinity of Schrassig, Baker company was located at Scheidgen, on the battalions northern flank, Charlie company was on the southern flank in Mondorf, next to the french border. Dog company with it's M-5 light tanks was guarding Radio Luxembourgs relay towers at Junglinster.

Service company began straight away with repair and maintenance work on the tanks that were in a rather poor condition. But as supplies were short all down the line and only little progress was made.


During this time Dick Wagman must have met “Ketty" (Luxembourgish short-form for Catherine), most probably while being on pass in Luxembourg-City. From what I’ve found out while going through the photos and the text, Ketty must have been in her early twenties. It is quite obvious that she had a crush for young Dick Wagman. I'm quite sure that her parents had a pub located in the “Allée Schaeffer”, in the Limpertsberg quarter of Luxembourg-City. This is a street on the edge of the big “Glacisfeld” market square, where all the big markets and fairs were held, so it is a safe bet that, from an economical point of view, the familly must have done fairly well.



Christmas Card "Ketty" had sent to Dick.










The profits from the sales of these cards went to the evacuees from along the german border







A few days later she sent him a New-Years card.









On the 10th of january "Ketty" gave Dick this handmade photoalbum.








The first part of the album is made up of patriotic cards and leaflets. These were abundant during the first months following the liberation of Luxembourg. The themes were reccuring: a deep feeling of debt to the american liberators, a strong will for national independance and negative feelings against the former occupier

 

The second part of the album is of a more personal character. Filled with familly photos it draws a picture of a somewhat naive young girl.

The familly: the father and mother as well as a sister named "Odette". This is a very small familly for these times. But if you take into account that the familly was running a pub it makes sense, as the mother would have had to help a lot in the familly business. It might even be possible that the father had another job either as an employee or maybe he even owned another business






Two more indications that the familly was well of! In the summer of 1938 "Ketty" was on vacation in the Vosges mountains of France. At that time most people could not afford to send their kids abroad for holidays. You were lucky if you could spent a few weeks at your uncles or aunts farm or with relatives living in another part of the country.

The fact that the grand-mother was living in her own home is rather unusual as well. Most people could not afford their own home, so after marriage they stood in their parents home, living with them under the same roof until they passed away.






Odette playing in the snow in front of what I suppose was the familly's pub. Odette on a sled on the big "Glacis" market square.





From spring 1941 on, the luxembourgish boys and girls aged 18 were forced into the "Reichsarbeitsdienst", where they had to do forced labour for a duration of six months. To prevent them from running away they were alkways taken far from their homeland, mostly to the regions of eastern or northern germany. "Ketty" had to spend the timespan from the 14th of april 1942 to the 31st of october 1942 in the RAD. Most of the times the luxembourgers started creating trouble even before they had left the country! Each departure at the central train station was a show of patriotic verve with people singing patriotic songs waving luxembourgish flags and hailing the exiled Grand-Duchesse. So very soon the Nazis had replaced the SA Band with Gestapo, SS and SD to prevent too much trouble. In the "Arbeitslager" the Germans always tried to prevent regrouping luxembourgers, so "Ketty" was quite lucky to be among so many luxembourgish girls, my grandmother as an example was on her own with just the daughter of a luxemboourgish Quisling, who treated her even worse then the german girls. The german staff and girls were under order to "break" the unruly luxembourgers so the luxembourgishl girls passed a very unpleasant year away from home.



Some pictures of "Ketty" in the RAD.










Odette palying the accordeon and with a friend in front of the parent's pub.





"Ketty" & Odette with friends.








"Ketty" and her friend Mary on a day trip to Mondorf-les-Bains.





The liberation of Luxembourg on the 10th of september and "Ketty" with Melanie in the Luxembourg-City park, not far away from the place where they lived.






From the 16th of december till the 24th of december the remaining tanks of the 70th Armoured Battalion fought in support of the 12th Infantry of the 4th Infantry Division. The company tanks were pocketed out in packs of two to four tanks and together with small detachments of infantry formed Task Forces, fending off the 7 Armee’s attack. They fought in every engagment to the south of the”Müllerthal” and the “Schwaarz Iernz” creek, in places like Osweiler, Lauterborn and Dickweiler, where they prevented the attacking Volksgrenadiers to submerge the american garrisons. They were part of the unsuccesfull attack to rescue the defenders of Echternach, in Berdorf they helped relieving the surrounded defenders of the “Fortress Hotel”. They fought at Scheidgen, Consdorf, Colbette, Herborn and BechDue to a lack of resources they were taken off the line in the evening of Christmas Eve and they returned to ther biovouac areas where they had been on december 16th. Their losses numberedone officer and five enlisted men killed in action, as well as three officer and twenty-one enlisted men wounded in action. Material losses were five medium tanks, one light tank, one halftrack and one jeep.




One of the 70th Armoured Battalion’s M4 A3 with 76mm main gun.

 

Now that was something!

 

Three more knives:

A PAL RH37 marked "US NAVY" with a MK II sheath.















A PAL RH36 in mint condition.









A 7 inch EGW.

 

some amazing groupings Sky and one one from your country too !

I also found something from 1944. It's a French liberation stars and stripes made with part of French flag (the blue and the red cloth + the brass "RF" pike insignia and a U.S. silk parachute (the white parts). They were sewn together and the 48 stars were hand painted on the blue part. The pole is had carved and painted blue. it's great for a F.F.I. grouping.

 

That's a great find Skipper!!!!

 

Some autographs...


Albert Müller, Kommandant S 59 i. d. 3.Schnellbootflottille
War signed on the reverse side by Albert Müller.

Heiner Engelbrecht, 1914-18.march 1945, Flugzeugführer 9./KG 27 "Boelcke"
He has received his Knights Cross during the "Battle of Stalingrad"
KIA March 1945!

Hans Sehringer, 1913-1985, Flugzeugführer 2.(F)/AufklGrp 123