Original German WWII Heer Army Signals Leutnant Officer's Gray Leather Greatcoat with Dagger Hanger and Period Train Ticket

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a lovely matured example of 1930s-1940s Period blue gray leather overcoat, or greatcoat, as used by the officers in the German Wehrmacht, including the Kriegsmarine Navy, Heer Army, and Luftwaffe Air Force. With the dark blue gray color, it would not be preferred by members of the SS, who in general only used all black leather.

The greatcoat has a heavy grade leather exterior with a blue gray rayon internal lining, manufactured with excellent quality and offered in very good condition. The exterior features two waist pockets with flaps, lined with soft brushed cotton twill. There is a slash pockets on the inner chest of both sides, and a very large zippered compartment on the inner lower left front. There is even a dagger clip by a large eyelet that opens under the left pocket flap, along with a guide loop, so this was definitely intended for an officer from the start. The style of manufacture is consistent with a genuine German Pre / Early WWII era private purchase uniform piece, and we can see where there originally was a maker label, however it is unfortunately completely missing. There are snaps around the edge of the interior, most likely for attachment of an insulating liner, which is not included.

The front of the greatcoat features the classic double-breasted front closure, with 6 patterned aluminum topped pebbled magnetic buttons on each side. These all look to be maker marked on the back, and have a very interesting attachment system, where the button attachments go through grommets on the front, and are secured by either circlips on the back for those with loops, or by large split pins that are part of the buttons. These are all under a flap on the interior, so that they do not get caught on the wearer's clothes. The rear of the jacket has an adjustable belt, and there are also several internal straps that can be used to alter the fit of the greatcoat.

The button-attached style Leutnante schulterklappen (Lieutenant Grade Officer shoulder boards) of this tunic are constructed with two rows of fine silver flatware "Russia Braid" double piping around the edge and have Zitronengelb (lemon-yellow) felt bottoms and straps. This is the Waffenfarbe (corps color) used by the Heer Army Signal corps, responsible for setting up and maintaining communication equipment. There are no rank "pips" installed, indicating the junior officer rank of Leutnant, equivalent to a U.S. Army 2nd Lieutenant.

When inspecting the greatcoat, we found an old train ticket from Stadtwerke Augsburg in the zippered pocket on the lower left. It definitely looks to be WWII period, and represents some nice potential for future research.

The greatcoat is offered in very good service used condition, looking to have seen a good amount of use during the war. There is wear to the leather, and also some missing buttons on the back size adjustment. There is wear and repairs to the lining, as well as wear and some tearing to the lining at the ends of the sleeves.

This is an exceptional wartime coat that is an iconic piece synonymous with the German Officer of WWII. Ready to research and display!

Approximate Measurements:-
Collar to shoulder: 10.5"
Shoulder to sleeve: 24.5”
Shoulder to shoulder: 16"
Chest width: 19”
Waist: 17.5"
Hip: 24.5"
Front length: 46.5"