{"product_id":"original-german-wwii-luftwaffe-officer-white-summer-weight-schirmmutze-visor-cap-with-embroidered-bullion-wreath-an-cockade","title":"Original German WWII Luftwaffe Officer White Summer Weight Schirmmütze Visor Cap with Embroidered Bullion Wreath an Cockade","description":"\u003cp\u003eOriginal Item: Only One Available. This is lovely broken-in example of a Luftwaffe Officer's \u003cem\u003eSchirmmütze\u003c\/em\u003e Visor Cap, which has been fitted with a lightweight white summer crown. The design of this cap is very similar to a naval \"combination cap\", and allows different crowns to be installed depending on the time of year. The white crown has a lovely \"diamond weave\" and is unlined, which would definitely help keep the officer cool during the hot summer months. There is no crown stiffener installed, giving it a lovely \"Crushed\" saddle-form shape, which everyone loves.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis Officer's \u003cem\u003eSchirmmütze\u003c\/em\u003e Visor Cap is a very high quality manufactured example, and features some of the original Luftwaffe blue gray \u003cem\u003eFliegerblau\u003c\/em\u003e (Flier's Blue) wool on the bottom of the lower band, with a wide black ribbed wool cap band. This is bordered by two rows of fine silver bullion piping around the circumference, without any bullion on the crown. The cap is fronted by a lovely silvered stamped zinc Luftwaffe eagle on the removable crown, and a bullion embroidered high relief silver bullion oak leaf wreath with stylized wings and a embroidered bullion tri color cockade. The insignia are in very good shape, with the eagle showing loss of the silvering and oxidation of the base metal, and there is some some overall oxidation of the aluminum bullion due to age, though the red felt center still vibrant.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe visor on this cap is the standard \"vulcanfibre\" with a gloss top, which shows a lovely pattern of light checking and crazing due to age. It also still has the black patent faux leather stitched around the edge retained almost completely, definitely a rarity. There are no splits in the edge trim, and the underside is checkered green. We checked, and the visor is still firmly attached to the body of the cap. Above this is the correct bullion officer's chin strap, retained by pebbled buttons on the sides, which has left some marks on tops of the visor.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe interior still retains the original sweatband, which is beige finished pressed paper, though it is possible that it is very thin leather. It has become very dry and brittle over the years, and shows some cracking on the left side. We did not look under it to avoid possible damage. There are no markings that we can see anywhere on the cap, and our hat sizer indicates that it is a 56cm.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOverall condition is very good, especially considering the amount of use this cap probably saw, and it would make an impressive part of any collection. There is some staining and overall age toning to the white crown, and the bottom of the cap does show a good amount of wear to the wool, and especially on the lower row of bullion piping in the rear, which has lost most of the aluminum covering.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA lovely example with a great used look that would be a welcome part of any Luftwaffe collection! Ready to display!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe German \u003cem\u003eSchirmmütze \u003c\/em\u003eVisor Cap:\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe visor cap (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eSchirmmütze\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e) was an important part of the headgear worn by German uniformed military, civil, paramilitary and political organizations during the Third Reich. This was the standard cloth headgear worn as a part of the service uniform. Visor caps were worn outdoors as well as indoors, and were often required to be worn by all personnel on duty. Visor caps were made in versions specific to each organization and were often further differentiated through the use of insignia, colored piping, or style of chin cord, to indicate rank, role or branch. The insignia used on these caps ranged from simple stamped metal emblems, to elaborate hand embroidery. Visor caps were issued to enlisted soldiers and NCOs in the military and in some other organizations. Officers had to purchase their own hats, and lower ranks could choose to purchase caps that were of a higher quality than the rather basic, issue examples. The private purchase caps were generally made in very high quality, with fine materials. A wide variety of fabrics were used, from Trikot and doeskin, to heavy wool, or even lightweight white fabric for summer wear. In the military, issue of these caps was generally suspended shortly after the outbreak of the war, but they continued to be worn by some troops until the end of the war.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Original Items","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44883281903685,"sku":"ONSV26GTGS081","price":2295.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1524\/1342\/files\/IMG-2335.jpg?v=1776690357","url":"https:\/\/www.ima-usa.com\/products\/original-german-wwii-luftwaffe-officer-white-summer-weight-schirmmutze-visor-cap-with-embroidered-bullion-wreath-an-cockade","provider":"International Military Antiques","version":"1.0","type":"link"}