Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very attractive original German WWII M34 “Square Dip” steel helmet configured for Ordnungspolizei police use, retaining both its Police eagle and NSDAP shield decals, nearly all of its original satin black finish, and an especially interesting interior maker decal from Heinrich Mandelartz of Aachen. The helmet also retains all four liner attachment pins and an M31 style liner assembly, although the leather liner and chinstrap are now in relic condition.

The pressed steel shell retains almost all of its original satin black exterior paint. There is light scuffing and very little major finish loss, with only a few small dents present. One of the more noticeable dents is located around the rear right seven hole vent.

Both decals remain approximately 90% intact. The Police eagle and NSDAP shield show light scratching and wear, together with attractive age discoloration and checking to the clear lacquer overcoat. The result is a very appealing original patina without substantial loss to either insignia.

The interior paint is similarly well retained, although there is some bubbling and oxidation inside the crown. There are no holes in the shell for attachment of a top comb.

The inside crown carries a distinctive manufacturer decal:

HEINRICH MANDELARTZ
(Walking Man)
HMA
AACHEN

Heinrich Mandelartz of Aachen is known as a supplier of German fire helmets and related equipment. The survival of the HMA maker decal inside this police helmet is a particularly interesting manufacturing detail and adds substantially to its collector appeal.

All four original liner attachment split pins remain present. They secure an M31 style liner assembly consisting of a galvanized steel outer liner band and an inner liner band supporting the padded leather liner.

The liner leather is now in delicate relic condition. Most of the fingers have partially or completely torn away, and the surviving leather should be handled carefully. The original top tie remains present, with remnants of the liner leather still attached to it.

A leather chinstrap is also present, but it is torn and heavily deteriorated. The surviving portions remain with the helmet, although they are fragile and should likewise be considered relic condition.

Condition overall is very good in terms of the shell, paint, decals, and surviving hardware, while the liner and chinstrap are clearly much more heavily deteriorated. The strong satin black finish, approximately 90% surviving double decals, HMA Aachen maker decal, all four liner pins, and complete basic liner band assembly make this a particularly interesting M34 Square Dip police helmet despite the relic interior leather.

For the German WWII police headgear collector, this example has several especially appealing features: excellent original black paint, strong double decals with attractive aged lacquer, a scarce and highly visible HMA / Aachen interior maker decal, all four liner attachment pins, and a surviving M31 style liner assembly. The damaged liner and broken chinstrap are fully disclosed, while the shell itself remains a strong and visually impressive Ordnungspolizei display piece.

The Ordnungspolizei, abbreviated Orpo, meaning "Order Police", were the uniformed police force in NSDAP Germany from 1936 to 1945. The Orpo organization was absorbed into the NSDAP monopoly on power after regional police jurisdiction was removed in favor of the central N government ("Reich-ification", Verreichlichung, of the police). The Orpo was controlled, nominally by the Interior Ministry but its executive functions rested with the leadership of the SS until the end of World War II. Owing to their green uniforms, Orpo were also referred to as Grüne Polizei (green police). The force was first established as a centralized organization uniting the municipal, city, and rural uniformed police that had been organized on a state-by-state basis.

The Ordnungspolizei encompassed virtually all of NSDAP Germany's law-enforcement and emergency response organizations, including fire brigades, coast guard, and civil defense. In the prewar period, Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, and Kurt Daluege, chief of the Order Police, cooperated in transforming the police force of the Weimar Republic into militarized formations ready to serve the regime's aims of conquest and racial annihilation. Police troops were first formed into battalion-sized formations for the invasion of Poland, where they were deployed for security and policing purposes, also taking part in executions and mass deportations. During World War II, the force had the task of policing the civilian population of the occupied and colonized countries beginning in spring 1940.