Original Item: One-of-a-Kind. This is a very attractive framed portrait painting of a German WWII Heer Infantry NCO. The portrait appears to be oil on canvas and depicts the soldier in uniform from the chest upward.

The complete framed piece measures approximately 16 1/4 inches wide by 18 1/4 inches tall, while the visible portrait itself measures approximately 9 1/2 inches by 11 1/4 inches.

There is a painted name or artist’s signature in the lower right corner. It appears to read RIER, or something similar, but we have not been able to determine the exact spelling.

The subject is depicted wearing a standard Heer M36 field tunic. The silver-gray NCO Tresse bordering the collar and collar Litzen identifies him as a noncommissioned officer. His shoulder boards also have Tresse borders but remain open at the outer ends, indicating the junior NCO rank of Unteroffizier, approximately comparable to a U.S. Army Sergeant.

Only the upper portion of the uniform is visible, but the soldier is also shown wearing an M38 overseas cap. The front of the cap has a weiß (white) V-shaped soutache. White was the WWII German Waffenfarbe, or branch color, associated with Infanterie (Infantry) and Motorisierte Infanterie (Motorized Infantry). The shoulder board piping would therefore also have been white, although the color is not clearly visible in the portrait.

The careful depiction of the M36 tunic, NCO collar Tresse, open ended Unteroffizier shoulder boards, and white Infantry soutache provides a clear identification of the soldier’s rank and service branch. Together with its original period frame and partially legible artist’s signature, this is a distinctive piece of German WWII military portraiture with excellent display appeal.