This helmet is one of two that I picked up recently. The helmet has obviously seen better days as far as "finish" goes. A good 50% + of the surface finish has flaked off unfortunately. There are no kokarden but there is a nice M15 chin strap in great condition. The leather is a bit stiff after 100 years but this can be addressed. The spike and spine are slightly rusted but again this can be carefully removed. Restoring missing finish will take some work but is not impossible. Some photos:
The helmet is marked size 57 1/2 cm which is a good size for any helmet.
With most of the black lacquer missing we can see the primer coat which was applied to the leather shell.
The liner is in excellent condition! However, we can see that typically the rear half of the shell has collapsed inward.
A nice close up of the Rare M15 Waterloo Bandeau wappen.
In my experience half sizes were rare in pickelhauben, although I have seen them before. What makes this helmet unique though, are the markings. Most M15's as stated before are not marked so it is very cool to have them on your helmet. The helmet is stamped 173 R (Regiment) on the rear visor. References tell us that this regiment did not have a bandeau wappen because it was not formed until 1897..... Ninth Lothringisches Inf. Regt. Nr. 173, Base: St Avold, 111. Batt. Metz XVI AK. So at first glance, having a Waterloo bandeau on this helmet seems "bogus"!
However, the Army Korps marking on this helmet is stamped
X. AK . Many regiments with Napoleonic bandeau on their wappen come from this Korps. To be specific...Regts. 73, 74, 77, 78 and 164 were all part of X AK. So the question I would put to our European and more experienced collectors.....is there an explanation for this? Did R 173 have connections to Hanover? Did AK's provide helmets for other Korps?? The helmet is clearly stamped 1915 underneath the Regt stamp. Photos of the markings will be posted tomorrow. Merry Christmas to all!
The helmet is marked size 57 1/2 cm which is a good size for any helmet.
With most of the black lacquer missing we can see the primer coat which was applied to the leather shell.
The liner is in excellent condition! However, we can see that typically the rear half of the shell has collapsed inward.
A nice close up of the Rare M15 Waterloo Bandeau wappen.
In my experience half sizes were rare in pickelhauben, although I have seen them before. What makes this helmet unique though, are the markings. Most M15's as stated before are not marked so it is very cool to have them on your helmet. The helmet is stamped 173 R (Regiment) on the rear visor. References tell us that this regiment did not have a bandeau wappen because it was not formed until 1897..... Ninth Lothringisches Inf. Regt. Nr. 173, Base: St Avold, 111. Batt. Metz XVI AK. So at first glance, having a Waterloo bandeau on this helmet seems "bogus"!
However, the Army Korps marking on this helmet is stampedX. AK . Many regiments with Napoleonic bandeau on their wappen come from this Korps. To be specific...Regts. 73, 74, 77, 78 and 164 were all part of X AK. So the question I would put to our European and more experienced collectors.....is there an explanation for this? Did R 173 have connections to Hanover? Did AK's provide helmets for other Korps?? The helmet is clearly stamped 1915 underneath the Regt stamp. Photos of the markings will be posted tomorrow. Merry Christmas to all!
I can’t wait to see its transformation.
