Original Item: One of a Kind Set. This is a fantastic USGI bring back grouping from the European theater of WWII. As the saying goes, "To the Victor, The Spoils", so USGIs brought home large amounts of material from WWII Germany. It was however regulated, and items were supposed to be inspected to make sure they did not have any intelligence value and were also appropriate to send back. Live grenades were definitely NOT an item that was wanted on the voyage with returning GI's.

This set comes with a "CERTIFICATE" named to T/5 Earl A. Clark. 32956798, of Co. C. 2830th Engineer C. Bn, which is dated 22 April 1945. It is signed by Samuel T. Memory, Captain, CE, Commanding of Co C, 2830th Engineer C. Bn.. The certificate indicates that the items have been checked and are all allowed to be brought back home, and lists the items as:

1 - STEEL HELMET
2 - BAYONETS
1 - SACK
1 - MESS KNIFE
1 - FIELD CAP

These are exactly the items that we have in this lovely grouping! We also have found the enlistment records of Earl A. Clark, which indicate that he was born in 1924, and enlisted August 25, 1943 in his hometown of Camden, New Jersey. He is listed as being an an Electrician, which is undoubtedly why he became a Technician in Company "C" of the 2830th Engineer Combat Battalion. He passed away in 2008 at the age of 84, as indicated by his online obituary listed here: .

The 2830th Engineer (Combat) Battalion, which was later renamed the 496th Engineer Battalion, functioned as part of the 40th Engineer (Combat) Regiment, which as a unit served for 567 days in combat, earning Seven Campaign Stars, Two with Arrowheads: Sicily with invasion arrowhead, Naples-Fogia, Rome-Arno, Southern France with invasion arrow head, Ardennes-Alsace, Rhineland, and Central Europe. Enlisting in mid 1943 means that Clark would most likely have been sent in as a replacement for the invasion of Southern France. Definitely some great research potential here!

The items included in this grouping are as follows, along with short descriptions:

- German WWII M40 Service Used Single Decal Army Heer Helmet with 56cm Liner - Stamped EF62.

This is a very nice service used example, showing a well worn exterior with a lovely patina. The decal is nicely retained, and the helmet does look to have been repainted during the war, which is still partly retained. It is stamped EF62 for manufacture by Emaillierwerke AG, of Fulda, size 62. This small size is usually fitted with 54cm to 55cm liners, however a size 56 liner was "shoehorned" into this shell during the war, probably because they had no other supplies available. The liner is in good shape, and still stamped with size 56 on the leather. There is unfortunately no chin strap.

- German WWII 1943 dated 98k Bayonet by Ernst Pack & Söhne with Scabbard & Frog - Matching Serial 7107.

This very nice example is completely correct, and marked 43. cul on the reverse ricasso for 1943 manufacture by Ernst Pack & Söhne of Solingen, a well known maker from the legendary "City of Blades" in Western Germany. It is marked with serial number 7107 on the blade, and the maker and serial information matches that stamped onto the scabbard. It is in very good overall condition, showing only light wear from service, however the blade was never sharpened. The leather frog does show some degradation, but is actually maker marked and dated 1938 on the reverse.

- German WWII 98k 1941 Dated Bayonet by W.K.C. Waffenfabrik with Scabbard & Frog - Serial 6640 e.

This very nice example is completely correct, and marked 41 cvl on the ricasso for 1941 manufacture by the legendary W.K.C. Waffenfabrik of Soligen, Germany. It is also marked with serial 6640 / e, which does not match the scabbard. It is in very good overall condition, showing wear from service, however the blade was never sharpened. The leather front shows tearing at the top by the frog button, but is otherwise in very nice shape.

- German WWII M31 Bread Bag in good used condition, maker marked and dated L.L.G. / HESSEN / 1940. It is missing the shoulder strap, but is mostly complete, with a few missing buttons and wear / degradation to the leather.

- German WWII Custom Stag Handled Mess Knife with Scabbard.

This is a very nice little knife, measuring 8 inches overall with a 4 inch long single ended blade. It has a lovely stag horn grip secured by 3 brass rivets, and is typical of the custom mess knives often seen during the war. These were far easier to use at times than the standard mess kit utensils, and this example is actually still quite sharp.

- German WWII Service Used Heer Army EM-NCO Schiffchen M38 Overseas Cap - Removed Cockade.

This is a very nice service worn example, showing period wear as well as numerous repairs to holes and tears from service. The overseas cap, nicknamed in German military slang as Schiffchen, or literally "little ship" as it resembled an up-turned row-boat, was standard issue for all branches of the Heer. It still retains the eagle on the front peak, but the cockade below it was removed for some reason.

A fantastic WWII USGI bring back set with some great research potential. We rarely get them this nice and well documented! Ready to research and display!

98K Bayonet Specifications:
Blade Length: 10"
Blade Style: Single Edge w/ Fuller
Overall length: 15 1/4“
Crossguard: 1 1/2”
Scabbard Length: 10 1/2"

The German Stahlhelm Steel Helmet
The first "modern" steel helmets were introduced by the French army in early 1915 and were shortly followed by the British army later that year. With plans on the drawing board, experimental helmets in the field, ("Gaede" helmet), and some captured French and British helmets the German army began tests for their own steel helmet at the Kummersdorf Proving Grounds in November, and in the field in December 1915. An acceptable pattern was developed and approved and production began at Eisen-und Hüttenwerke, AG Thale/Harz, (Iron and Foundry Works), in the spring of 1916.

These first modern M16 helmets evolved into the M18 helmets by the end of WWI. The M16 and M18 helmets remained in usage through-out the Weimar Reichswehr, (National Defence Force, Circa 1919-1933), era and on into the early years of the Third Reich until the development of the smaller, lighter M35 style helmet in June 1935.

In 1934 tests began on an improved Stahlhelm, whose design was a development of World War I models. The Eisenhüttenwerke company of Thale carried out prototype design and testing, with Dr. Friedrich Schwerd once again taking a hand.

The new helmet was pressed from sheets of molybdenum steel in several stages. The size of the flared visor and skirt was reduced, and the large projecting lugs for the obsolete armor shield were eliminated. The ventilator holes were retained, but were set in smaller hollow rivets mounted to the helmet's shell. The edges of the shell were rolled over, creating a smooth edge along the helmet. Finally, a completely new leather suspension, or liner, was incorporated that greatly improved the helmet's safety, adjustability, and comfort for each wearer. These improvements made the new M1935 helmet lighter, more compact, and more comfortable to wear than the previous designs.

The Army's Supreme Command officially accepted the new helmet on June 25, 1935 and it was intended to replace all other helmets in service.

More than 1 million M1935 helmets were manufactured in the first two years after its introduction, and millions more were produced until 1940 when the basic design and production methods were changed. This mainly involved adding the vent hole to the stamping process, as opposed to adding the rivet later.