Original Item: Only One Available. This cap is a very nice service used example of a German WWII Wehrmacht Heer Army Officer's Schirmmütze (visor cap), with a lovely "Crushed" shape. This "saddle-form" shape is highly desirable, and accomplished by removing the crown support stiffener ring. It features the typical feldgrau (field gray) "whipcord" weave wool construction with a forest green "badge cloth" band and a traditional high forward crown.

It features the typical green wool gabardine construction with a forest green band and a traditional high forward crown. The cap also has matching Goldgelb (Golden Yellow) piping along the top edge and flanking either side of the band, the Corps Color (Waffenfarbe) for Cavalry, as well as reconnaissance and armored reconnaissance units with cavalry traditions.

It is decorated with a high end hand embroidered silver bullion eagle insignia on the peak and and an open silver bullion hand embroidered wreath surrounding an embroidered bullion tri-color cockade on the band. The aluminum bullion has oxidized due to age and wear, giving it a white "frosted" look. There is no chin-strap on this visor, and no sign that there ever was one, so in this case the embroidered bullion insignia is what indicates this to be an officer's cap. The black leather visor is still in good shape and supple, though over time the black finish has checked and degraded, so it now has a fantastic pattern of cracks in the finish. The tan leather sweatband is in very good condition, still supple with no tracks or tears that we can see, in spite of the heavy use it must have seen.

The cap is lined with cream rayon faux silk, much of which is now more of a brown color in areas due to sweat and oil staining, as well as age. There is no sweatshield on this cap, and it does not have any stitch markings indicating that it had one previously. It still has a clear maker name inside a diamond and a size, which are fully legible:

This is a known high quality maker of caps that worked during the war and afterwards as well.

Overall condition is just lovely, with a fantastic "been there" look. There is no mothing we can see, and the only real "damage" are two small holes in the crown piping. The bullion insignia also show some degradation due to wear and oxidation, typical for a cap that has seen this level of service.

A great well broken in example of the classic hat worn by German Cavalry Officers in WWII. Very impressive and ready to display!

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.