Original Item: One of a Kind. This is a genuine German WWII Model 42 steel helmet reportedly brought back by a U.S. serviceman after being recovered from the battlefield. Its most striking feature is a pair of approximately .30 caliber sized projectile holes through the lower right rear of the shell. The outward tearing and deformation of the steel indicate that both are exit holes, suggesting that the projectiles traveled upward from inside the helmet before passing through the rear of the shell. The impacts also damaged the leather liner and metal liner band.

The steel surrounding the holes is torn and remains somewhat sharp, so the helmet should be handled carefully. While the damage is certainly consistent with a combat struck helmet, the circumstances under which it occurred and whether the helmet was being worn at the time cannot be confirmed.

Apart from the projectile damage, this is a very good all original example of a German Model 42 steel helmet as issued to the Wehrmacht Heer (Army). The stamped sheet steel shell retains much of its later war panzergrau (armor gray) paint, displaying an excellent service used appearance. The exterior shows scattered paint loss, scratches, oxidation, and general wear. Portions of the original textured finish remain visible, although much of the texture has worn away, particularly across the crown. There is also a noticeable dent on the upper left side.

The interior paint is well retained beneath the liner, with additional wear and oxidation visible along the inner skirt and unrolled rim. There is no decal present. The absence of a decal is consistent with later wartime production and issue practices, when helmet decals were increasingly omitted as manufacturing was simplified.

The rear skirt is stamped hkp64 above heat lot number 4250. The manufacturer code hkp identifies Sächsische Emaillier und Stanzwerke A.G. of Lauter, Germany. This firm had previously used the code SE, which was later replaced by the three letter code hkp. The number 64 identifies the helmet as a size 64 shell, intended to accept size 56cm or 57cm liners, approximately equivalent to U.S. hat sizes 7 through 7 1/8.

All three liner retaining pins remain installed and retain portions of their original paint, with wear consistent with the rest of the helmet. The original Model 1931 leather liner is still present with all eight fingers intact, and the original top tie remains installed. The leather has become somewhat stiff and stained from age and use, with wear along the edge where it contacts the helmet rim.

Several small tears are present in the liner, together with more significant damage adjacent to the upper projectile hole. The impacts appear to have dislodged some of the rivets securing the leather liner to the inner metal band on the side opposite the shell damage.

The late war galvanized steel liner band is marked 64 n.A. / 57, indicating a size 57 liner manufactured for a size 64 helmet shell. An R.B.Nr. marking and date are also present on the left side of the liner band, but they are located directly within the damaged area and cannot be read clearly.

This helmet has an exceptional untouched appearance, with matching wear throughout the shell, liner pins, liner, and liner band. The projectile exit holes, damaged liner assembly, well marked hkp64 shell, and heat lot number 4250 make it a particularly dramatic example of a German WWII Model 42 combat helmet. The exact circumstances surrounding the damage remain unknown, but its condition and physical characteristics provide compelling evidence of violent wartime use.

The first modern steel combat helmet was introduced by the French Army in early 1915, followed later that year by the British Army. Germany had already experimented with protective headgear, including the so called Gaede helmet, and had access to captured French and British examples. Formal German testing of a new steel helmet began at the Kummersdorf Proving Grounds in November 1915, followed by field trials in December. An acceptable pattern was approved, and production began at Eisen- und Hüttenwerke A.G. of Thale in the spring of 1916.

The resulting Model 1916 helmet evolved into the Model 1918 by the end of WWI. Both patterns remained in service throughout the Weimar era Reichswehr and into the early years of the Third Reich, until development of a smaller and lighter helmet began during the mid 1930s.

Testing of an improved Stahlhelm began in 1934. The design was based upon the earlier WWI patterns, with prototype development and testing conducted by the Eisenhüttenwerke firm at Thale. Dr. Friedrich Schwerd, who had played an important role in developing the original German steel helmet, was again involved.

The new helmet was pressed from sheets of molybdenum steel in several stages. Its visor and skirt were reduced in size, while the large projecting lugs previously used to mount an armored brow plate were eliminated. Ventilation holes were retained but incorporated into smaller hollow fittings mounted through the shell. The shell edge was rolled inward to create a smooth rim.

A newly designed leather suspension system substantially improved the helmet’s fit, comfort, adjustability, and protective qualities. These changes made the Model 1935 lighter, smaller, and more comfortable than the earlier WWI patterns. The Army High Command officially accepted the new helmet on June 25, 1935, intending it to replace the older helmets then in service.

The design was simplified in 1940 to reduce manufacturing time and expense. The principal change was the introduction of ventilation openings stamped directly into the shell rather than formed by separately installed fittings. Collectors refer to this variation as the Model 1940, although it remained fundamentally an updated version of the Model 1935.

The final major wartime simplification was ordered by the Army High Command on July 6, 1942. The rolled shell edge used on the Models 1935 and 1940 was eliminated as an economy measure, leaving the rim with its distinctive outward flare and raw edge. Production of the resulting Model 1942 began on August 1, 1942, and continued until German helmet production ended as factories were captured or rendered inactive by wartime material shortages.