German militaria

A very nice Dutch pre war helmet reissued in the Wehrmacht. There are in general two types of pre war Dutch helmets reissued within the German army. The first type was a compete example with Dutch liner and chinstrap which was captured directly from army stocks in 1940. The second type were 4160 unfinished shells that were sold to the German government by the Dutch company of Artillerie Inrichtingen that was liquidated in 1942. These shells were acquired and fitted with specially modified German helmet liners by the company Biedermann & Charnikow in Litzmannstadt. These helmets were made specifically for the Schutzmannschaft and mostly issued guarding rural areas and fighting Partisans on the eastern front. The helmet comes with its wartime converted and assembled German M31 liner. Due to the shape of the helmets shell the liners are always installed backwards on a specifically designed mounting plate. Externally the lion plate insignia on the front has been removed and the helmet has been fully repainted in a textured Feldgrau paint. Exceptionally rare example that would be very hard to upgrade!

This helmet was recently recovered in a small group of helmets which were collected straight after the Liberation in Valkenswaard, the Netherlands and has never been in a collection before.