Thanks Dave. I thought the condition of the Pickelhaube was really excellent even though that word is overused todaly.
And, Pvon thanks to you for the kudos as well.
There are some things on my long term list of stuff I have missed over the years and then some things just pop up. I am sort of like a crow in that regard since I seem to be attracted to some new bright shiny thing. So, both things tend to attract my attention. Over the years I have tended to buy stuff that is in excellent condition, like the Zittau Pickelhaube, or identified stuff, like the Motorized Gendarmerie tunic. I also like pieces that the Polizei have reworked or re-issued. These things have a history that can be seen in pieces like the rather commonplace reworked Police bayonets. These items of issue bayonets started out with longer blades, Prussian Pol. stars in the grips, etc. Police P.08 are the same being extensively reworked and re-isued over the years.
Here is an example. This is a recently acquired Stahlhelm Police helmet. This helmet started out life as a Model 1916 WWI Austrian helmet. One of 486,000 German made helmets issued to Austrian forces during WWI. It was manufactured with a revised Model 1917 liner and after the war it was used by the Austrian Police and the chinstrap is property marked to the Steyrmark district of the Land Gendarmerie, The Gendarmerie armorers drilled two small holes on the left side of the helmet dome next to the lugs for attachment of the armored frontal plate. This secured a brass flaming grenade as the insignia of the Austrian Gendarmerie. When Austria became part of the German Reich as the Ostmark, Austrian Policemen took off their helmets and held up their right hands and took the oath to become German Policemen. Austrian/German armorers once again modified these M1916 helmets by brush painting them green and then attached new German Police decals to these helmets to be worn by Austrian Policemen with their new Model 1936 green Polizei uniforms. These WWI period helmets continued to serve during WWII. After the end of the war the Austrian Police were once again stood up and Austrian Police armorers painted over the decals in "Gendarmerie Grey" or "Police Green". The helmets served in Austria through the 1950s according to Ludwig Baer in his book, "
The History of the German Steel Helmet 1916-1945".
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