Original German WWII 1940 Dated Rare Tropical Afrikakorps DAK Heer Army EM/NCO Steel Buckle with Tab by Richard Sieper & Söhne

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very rare totally genuine WWII Deutsches Afrikakorps (DAK) Heer Army EM/NCO's Steel Painted Belt Buckle (Koppelschloß), which is in lovely service used condition. The buckle is die-stamped steel (magnetic), with a lovely DAK Olive Green finish. The front of the buckle is embossed with Wehrmacht eagle and motto GOTT MIT UNS (God With Us) inside a double rope border with ribbed back ground and oak leaf wreath at the bottom. The paint is well retained, though worn off the raised portions of the front and also around the corners somewhat, typical for a buckle that saw real use in the field. The rear retains more of the finish, though it is worn off the clip loop and edges as one would expect.

The the reverse of the buckle is nicely stamped with maker mark R. S. & S., for R. Sieper & Söhne of Lüdenscheid, Germany, a city with a very large garment accessories industry. The buckle still retains the leather tab, which is manufacturer marked and dated, though somewhat faint:

R. SIEPER & SÖHNE
1940
LÜDENSCHEID

The leather tab is in a lovely condition with all of the stitching still intact. The leather is still soft with some wrinkling present.

Overall a lovely service used example of a very rare belt buckle from the Deutsches Afrikakorps, DAK!

History of the German Africa Corps
The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (Deutsches Afrikakorps or DAK) was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of their African colonies, the formation fought on in Africa, under various appellations, from March 1941 until its surrender in May 1943. The unit's best known commander was Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.

The dry climate of Africa proved to be an issue with much of the standard leather field gear that the German Army usually used. It would dry out and crack quickly, and become unusable. To deal with this, the standard field gear such as belts, Y-straps, A-frames, bayonet frogs, and other items, were issued in special tropical web versions.