Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very attractive named German WWII Heer Army Infantry Officer's Schirmmütze, or visor cap, manufactured by August Schellenberg of Berlin and measuring approximately 57cm. The cap retains its original crown stiffener, giving it a strong high front profile while still developing the desirable saddle form shape associated with well worn officer headgear. Constructed from fine Feldgrau doeskin weave wool with a dark bottle green Flaschengrün cap band and matching Weiß white branch piping, it is a classic Infantry officer visor with excellent maker markings and an interior name slip reading Lehner Joh.

The cap body is made from fine field gray doeskin wool with the traditional dark bottle green badge cloth band. White Waffenfarbe piping runs around the upper crown and along both edges of the band, consistent with Heer Infantry and Motorized Infantry branch use.

The original internal crown stiffener remains installed. As a result, the cap has retained its traditional high forward crown rather than collapsing heavily at the sides, but years of wear and storage have still given it an attractive natural saddle form profile.

The front is fitted with a well detailed aluminum Heer eagle above an open oak leaf and acorn wreath surrounding an aluminum tricolor cockade. The eagle and cockade remain bright, while the silvered zinc alloy wreath has lost some of its original silvering and has matured to an attractive gray patina.

The red felt center of the cockade remains vibrant and intact with no notable damage.

Silver bullion officer chin cords are secured by standard pebbled buttons on either side of the cap. The cords show only light service wear, with a few small areas of displaced bullion, particularly near the left attachment point where the cord joins around the button.

The visor is constructed from pressed Vulkanfibre with a smooth black leather look upper surface and a checkered beige underside. It remains firmly attached to the cap body. The upper gloss finish shows only light edge wear together with a fine pattern of age related crazing and checking.

The interior is lined with cream colored faux silk of the type often encountered on higher quality officer visor caps. The lining shows staining from actual wear and use.

The diamond shaped celluloid sweat shield remains present. It has some cracking around the corners, while its attachment stitching remains complete, although the surrounding area is stained and heavily soiled from accumulated dirt and body oils.

The maker's logo remains bright and readily legible beneath the celluloid:

A (Bear Logo) S

Sonderklasse
STIRNDRUCKFREI
D R G M

GES. GESCH.

The stylized bear between the letters A and S identifies August Schellenberg of Berlin.

A paper name slip remains in the interior name pocket and reads:

Lehner Joh.

This appears to identify a former owner of the cap, although no additional service history or provenance accompanies the name and we have therefore not attempted to expand or identify the individual further.

The sweatband is natural leather and shows overall staining from use but remains free from major cracking, tearing, or other serious damage. Several sections of stitching toward the rear edge have deteriorated, but the sweatband remains largely secure.

The inner right side of the sweatband is embossed:

Stirndruckfrei
D.R.G.M. 1 383 756

This marking is consistent with the other August Schellenberg branding present within the cap.

The cap measures approximately 57cm using a hat sizer.

Overall condition is very good, with the original colors still strongly retained. The white piping shows some staining from dirt and exposure around the upper crown and lower edge, while the central piping remains noticeably whiter where it has been better protected.

The wool body has no major tears, although there are scattered areas of moth damage. Some of these affect only the surface nap, while others have produced small holes. There is also a localized area of wear at the very front of the crown.

For the Heer officer headgear or Infantry collector, this is a particularly appealing example due to its classic saddle form profile, original crown stiffener, white branch piping, silver bullion officer cords, attractive aged insignia, clearly marked August Schellenberg interior, measured 57cm size, and especially the surviving Lehner Joh. name slip. The staining, moth wear, sweat shield cracking, and localized stitching loss are all fully disclosed, while the cap retains excellent visual presence and strong period character.

The German Schirmmütze Visor Cap:
The visor cap (Schirmmütze) 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.