Original German WWII 1935 Dated Tornister 34 Pony Fur Backpack by Franz Cobau with Shoulder Straps

Original Item. Only One Available. These cowhide-covered rucksacks were known as the Tornister (Knapsack) Model 34 (developed in 1934) and this example comes complete with the correct shoulder straps. It looks to have all of the leather components still present, showing light to moderate wear from service. As the war progressed the design was simplified for economical and practical reasons so the cowhide cover was eliminated making these packs especially scarce on today's collector market. These are often described as being covered with "pony fur", however research shows that this was just a nickname, and was never used on these. The German nickname for these packs was Affe, or ape.

This example of a pre-war rucksack is fitted with brown leather, which would be replaced in many areas by black leather as the war progressed. It comes complete with the correct shoulder straps, which are designed to attach to ammunition pouches on the belt in the front, and have side straps that attach to hooks on the bottom of the pack. It retains over 80% of the pony fur hide and the leather is in very good used condition on the pack. It still has an original maker marking on the back between the straps, which is a bit faint but still legible with a magnifier:-

FRANZ COBAU
BERLIN
1935

This is a known maker of holsters and other leather goods during the war. As a real treat, the right shoulder strap on this example is both maker marked, and bears a regimental marking of 6. / J.R. 92 11, definitely giving this some nice potential for future research.

The pack does show some wear from use, with a bit of staining to the canvas, but it definitely was well cared for and not abused. The leather does show some wear and cracking to the finish, but is still for the most part soft and pliable, with no tearing that we can see. It looks to have been stored flat for a long period of time, which has caused the bottom of the pack to become a bit misshapen as we often see. Measures approximately 13"H x 12"W x 5"D.

A lovely complete example of a hard to find backpack as used by German soldiers in WW2. Ready to display!