SkipperJohn
Well-known member
Here is my latest purchase; an Officer of the Colberg Grenadier Regiment Graf Gneisenau, 2nd Pommeranian, 9th Regt, Model 1867:
The helmet is in excellent condition.
It has only one Kokarde since it is prior to 1897, and the Kokarde is the proper type for officers from that period. It measures 55mm:
There is no Kokarde on the left side:
Model 1867 did not use a rear spine so the leather on this helmet is slightly thicker that that on later private purchase helmets:
The liner is the square finger type used by officers until 1880. The underside of the front visor is green but it has darkened considerably over time and appears black in the photo. The underside of the rear neck guard is red, but it has also darkened:
The spike unscrews and the vent holes open:
And close by turning the pearl ring:
The gilding on this helmet is immaculate, including the spike, stars, spike base, chinscales, and the Wappen. I questioned the Wappen when I initially saw this piece so I sought out opinions from others on this forum before I made my purchase. I also bothered the seller with hundreds of questions before I decided to buy. I am exceedingly happy that I made my decision. The officer who owned this helmet spared no expense.
The Wappen is stamped out of brass in the proper gauge for the period and has the proper Prussian thread on the fasteners:
It is a much "deeper" stamping than newer private purchase helmets and there are several sharp edges:
The reverse side of the stamping is as detailed as the front and the original zinc washers and nuts remain:
Enlisted helmets from the period used a clip type of slider mount but they were unpopular, so most, if not all, private purchase models continued to use screw fasteners:
The most unusual feature of this Wappen are the reinforcements soldered on the reverse side. These are soldered on with the same solder (and excessive flux) used on the screw fasteners. The solder is not neatly done and appears to have been added by the manufacturer. I have seen this on some private purchase Wappens that were much thinner, but never this many. I believe that this was done by the manufacturer to prevent breakage or distortion that could occur since the stamping was so "deep".
This Wappen was used until 16 June, 1913, when it was replaced with the Grenadier Wappen with the Colberg 1807 bandeaux.
I would like to thank Randy T, Brother James, and Colonel Joe for their assistance in helping me make my decision.
John
The helmet is in excellent condition.
It has only one Kokarde since it is prior to 1897, and the Kokarde is the proper type for officers from that period. It measures 55mm:
There is no Kokarde on the left side:
Model 1867 did not use a rear spine so the leather on this helmet is slightly thicker that that on later private purchase helmets:
The liner is the square finger type used by officers until 1880. The underside of the front visor is green but it has darkened considerably over time and appears black in the photo. The underside of the rear neck guard is red, but it has also darkened:
The spike unscrews and the vent holes open:
And close by turning the pearl ring:
The gilding on this helmet is immaculate, including the spike, stars, spike base, chinscales, and the Wappen. I questioned the Wappen when I initially saw this piece so I sought out opinions from others on this forum before I made my purchase. I also bothered the seller with hundreds of questions before I decided to buy. I am exceedingly happy that I made my decision. The officer who owned this helmet spared no expense.
The Wappen is stamped out of brass in the proper gauge for the period and has the proper Prussian thread on the fasteners:
It is a much "deeper" stamping than newer private purchase helmets and there are several sharp edges:
The reverse side of the stamping is as detailed as the front and the original zinc washers and nuts remain:
Enlisted helmets from the period used a clip type of slider mount but they were unpopular, so most, if not all, private purchase models continued to use screw fasteners:
The most unusual feature of this Wappen are the reinforcements soldered on the reverse side. These are soldered on with the same solder (and excessive flux) used on the screw fasteners. The solder is not neatly done and appears to have been added by the manufacturer. I have seen this on some private purchase Wappens that were much thinner, but never this many. I believe that this was done by the manufacturer to prevent breakage or distortion that could occur since the stamping was so "deep".
This Wappen was used until 16 June, 1913, when it was replaced with the Grenadier Wappen with the Colberg 1807 bandeaux.
I would like to thank Randy T, Brother James, and Colonel Joe for their assistance in helping me make my decision.
John
