Hi all from (not so sunny) surrey in the uk
Actually Ive been a frequent guest to this site for many months and always intended joining, so Ive finally taken the plunge and hope I can bring something to the forum.
Ive been passionate about the great war for over 28 years, though I actually started collecting when I was 8..(40 yrs ago
) when my uncle Tom gave me his medals an enfield round and some other bits and bobs he had brought back from his days on landing craft in WW2. I was nearly 13 before I worked out he wasnt actually bald as a result of testing the first atomic bomb on the moon.. :? though most of the other tales were quite true!
My main interest is Imperial German (obviously) and French uniforms, equipment, helmets, munitions, grenades..blah blah you get the picture..anything really to do with the period from about 1870 to 1918.
In those 28 years I have visited just about all of the western front, large parts of the Italien front (Kern is awesome!!) and this year for the first time the eastern front, in Poland, Latvia and Lithuania. Poland was fantastic apart from the roads, but the mosquitos in Latvia must be descended from Pterodactyls crossed with Tigers! they left me with lumps that took over 2 weeks to go down.
Obviously in 28 years of visiting the battlefields, I have also aquired a huge number of artifacts. Please dont get me wrong..Im dont detect..I dont even own a detector. I know there is a very polarised view about picking up relics from the battlefield, but all of mine have come from an interest in walking the lines and seeing where things actually happened. 28 Years is a lot of ploughed fields. I also have an unhealthy (some might say) habit of diving down holes in the ground whenever I come across them, hence the name "keller rat" Yes its a strange habit and some might say dangerous, but I have learned and seen so many things in these little "time capsules" that just dont appear in contemporary writings and ref. books.
Well thats me in a nutshell. I had to get the relic thing off my chest. I know there are a lot of people that dont agree with this aspect of collecting and if that side of my collection is likely to cause great insult to existing members then its probably best to find that out now. I have so many things to ask and so many points to raise. I would rather cause that insult here and leave than have it come up in a few weeks or months time and cause a problem.
With that..HAPPY NEW YEAR all and I hope I can find a spot in your community.
Actually Ive been a frequent guest to this site for many months and always intended joining, so Ive finally taken the plunge and hope I can bring something to the forum.
Ive been passionate about the great war for over 28 years, though I actually started collecting when I was 8..(40 yrs ago
) when my uncle Tom gave me his medals an enfield round and some other bits and bobs he had brought back from his days on landing craft in WW2. I was nearly 13 before I worked out he wasnt actually bald as a result of testing the first atomic bomb on the moon.. :? though most of the other tales were quite true!My main interest is Imperial German (obviously) and French uniforms, equipment, helmets, munitions, grenades..blah blah you get the picture..anything really to do with the period from about 1870 to 1918.
In those 28 years I have visited just about all of the western front, large parts of the Italien front (Kern is awesome!!) and this year for the first time the eastern front, in Poland, Latvia and Lithuania. Poland was fantastic apart from the roads, but the mosquitos in Latvia must be descended from Pterodactyls crossed with Tigers! they left me with lumps that took over 2 weeks to go down.
Obviously in 28 years of visiting the battlefields, I have also aquired a huge number of artifacts. Please dont get me wrong..Im dont detect..I dont even own a detector. I know there is a very polarised view about picking up relics from the battlefield, but all of mine have come from an interest in walking the lines and seeing where things actually happened. 28 Years is a lot of ploughed fields. I also have an unhealthy (some might say) habit of diving down holes in the ground whenever I come across them, hence the name "keller rat" Yes its a strange habit and some might say dangerous, but I have learned and seen so many things in these little "time capsules" that just dont appear in contemporary writings and ref. books.
Well thats me in a nutshell. I had to get the relic thing off my chest. I know there are a lot of people that dont agree with this aspect of collecting and if that side of my collection is likely to cause great insult to existing members then its probably best to find that out now. I have so many things to ask and so many points to raise. I would rather cause that insult here and leave than have it come up in a few weeks or months time and cause a problem.
With that..HAPPY NEW YEAR all and I hope I can find a spot in your community.
