BACKGROUND: Military belts and their corresponding buckles date back centuries and were initially designed for attaching swords and daggers. In 1847 a new innovative box buckle with a quick release catch and corresponding belt were introduced which resulted in a Prussian, Hauptmann Virschow, initiating a new method of carrying personal equipment with the belt and shoulder straps supporting the majority of the weight. This system, with modifications, remains in use in most of the armies in the world to this day. During the Third Reich there was a prescribed form of wear of the belt and buckle with the buckle being positioned on the right side and the corresponding buckle catch on the left side. On January 24^TH 1936 a new pattern EM/NCO’s belt buckle was officially introduced to replace the previously worn Weimar era Reichsheer buckle. The basic design of the Reichsheer buckle was retained with the addition of the new Wehrmacht style national eagle. This pattern buckle was worn through-out the Third Reich period with minor manufacturing variations and different colored finishes. The colored finish was determined by regulations depending on what form of uniform it was to be worn with. Of Note: Originally military buckles produced under government contract had the addition of a leather, (canvas web for tropical buckles), tabs which were designed to help support the ammunition pouches and prevent slippage but regulations in 1942 discontinued the tabs to preserve leather although the directive was not completely adhered to. In late 1940, with the impending German entrance into the North African campaign, tropical uniforms and equipment were quickly developed and issued in time for DAK, Deutsches Afrika Korps, (German Africa Corps), personnel’s arrival in Tripoli in February 1941. Due to the extreme climate in North Africa the OKW, Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, (High Command of the Armed Forces), decided to replace the standard continental leather equipment items with canvas web construction equipment items in the belief that they would be better able to withstand the climate. Of Note: Eventually, due to leather shortages, many of the tropical uniform and equipment items would be issued to personnel serving in southern areas of continental Europe and other theatres of battle.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Early, (circa 1936-1940), field-grey painted, injection molded, aluminum construction box buckle with a pebbled background field and a slightly domed, embossed central motif. The central motif features an embossed Wehrmacht style eagle with down swept wings, clutching a canted swastika in it’s talons, on a subtly pebbled field to the center, encompassed by an embossed oak-leaf cluster to the bottom and script, "Gott Mit Uns", (God With Us), to the top. The oak-leaf cluster and script are on a ribbed background field and are encircled by both an inner and outer simulated twisted rope border. The obverse of the buckle has lost almost all of its field-grey paint and shows some light chafe wear which has resulted in loss of detail to the eagle. The reverse of the buckle is a mirror image of the obverse, excluding the pebbled background, and retains most of its field-grey paint. The reverse has the integral, raised, slotted buckle catch and separate prong bar and prongs all intact. The reverse of the buckle is also well marked with the faint, embossed manufacture’s initials, "FLL", with each initial within a separate circular border indicating manufacture by Friedrich Linden of Lüdenscheid. The prong bar has an age and usage darkened, brown leather tab stitched around it. The leather tab is well marked with the impressed manufacturer’s name, location and date, within an oval cartouche, "Friedrich Linden Lüdenscheid 1938". The leather tab is in overall good condition with light chafe wear. Also included is a roughly, 1 3/4" wide, 34 3/4" long, khaki/tan canvas web construction belt with an olive drab painted, steel buckle catch to one end and a tan leather buckle retaining tongue to the reverse of the other end, both intact. The buckle catch end of the belt is folded over and machine stitched to the reverse to secure the catch in place. The buckle catch retains about 75% of its original olive drab paint with heavy surface spotting. The buckle end of the belt is rounded off with tight reinforcement stitching. The reverse of the belt has a machine stitched on, leather buckle retaining tongue with seven pair of parallel, punched, buckle retaining holes. The buckle retaining tongue has it’s original stitching and shows minor surface cracking. The reverse of the retaining tongue is well marked with a stamped RB number. Of Note: The RB numbers, Reichsbetriebnummer, (National factory code numbers), were introduced in late 1942 and were intended to replace the manufacturers marks on garments and equipment to conceal the manufactures name and location from the allies, to prevent bombing raids on German industrial factories. The reverse of the belt is also well marked with a purple size inkstamp, "90". The belt is in overall good condition with light age and usage toning and a couple of small picks and pulls. The belt would roughly fit waist sizes of 28" to 33".

GRADE ***                             PRICE $298.00