Original German WWII M16 Transitional Heer Army Single Decal Helmet with 59cm Liner & Chinstrap - Added Tricolor Shield - Stamped Si. 66

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a lovely example of a WWI M16 helmet, which was converted for use by the Third Reich in the 1930s before the widespread issue of the M1935 helmet. This would involve repainting, and the helmet was then fitted with a pre-war M-31 Leather liner, with the correct WWII pattern split pins. It looks like it was probably in service for some time, as it now has a wartime Panzergrau (Armor Gray) color lightly textured finish, and is also now fitted with only a single Heer Army Eagle decal on the left side. It was probably originally issued with "Double Decals", but when it was repainted at arsenal, only a single decal was added, as per regulations. At some point after the war, another "National Colors" Shield was applied, which looks to possibly be original, but is definitely not wartime applied, which is why we are terming this a "single decal" helmet.

The helmet still has both the dome headed chinstrap retaining rivets, which hold the interior pickelhaube style chin strap lugs in place. The helmet still has the correct short vent hole lugs without steps, for attachment of a "stirnpanzer" helmet plate. Smaller sized helmets would have a step, but this does not, confirming its larger size. Above the left ear, the interior of the apron of the shell has a stamped manufacturer's code and size Si. 66, for the maker Eisenhuette Silesia, Paruschowitz Oberschlesien. This is a relatively uncommon maker to find, as they only produced shells in sizes 62 and 66. Size 66 is a nice large size that can accommodate liners from 58cm to 60cm or US 7 1/4 to 7 1/2. The larger size makes these harder to find and more desirable to a collector. We checked the inside of the helmet, but we were not able to see any rolling mill marking.

All three original liner retaining pins are intact and have complete original paint on the ends, which looks to have been applied before they were installed. The interior of the helmet still has an original M31 leather liner with all eight fingers present, and in good shape, with an intact top tie. This helmet actually has a partial "extra" finger, only seen on larger size liners such as this. The liner band is wartime galvanized steel, and unfortunately we cannot make out any of the markings on the exterior, however we can see a clear 59 size stamping on the leather itself. The liner is fitted with a correct wartime pattern chinstrap, which still has all thirteen size adjustment holes, and has all painted steel hardware. It is a bit degraded and stiff, with a partial tear near the last adjustment hole.

A beautiful, complete example of WWII Reissued M16 helmet with a single Heer Army decal and a post war added National Colors. Comes ready to research and display!

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, in the spring of 1916. These first modern M16 helmets evolved into the M18 helmets by the end of WWI. At the end of WWI it is estimated that Germany had produced about 8,500,000 steel helmets. As a result of the restrictions placed on the German’s by the Treaty of Versailles, which dictated a standing army of only 100,000 personnel, there was an abundant surplus of these helmets, and though they saw widespread use by Freikorps personnel, there was still a stockpile controlled by the Reichswehr.

These excess helmets underwent minor modifications in 1923 with the addition of provincial identifying shield decals and in 1931 with the development of a new chinstrap and liner system. Although helmet development was ongoing when AH came to power in 1933, the M16 and M18 helmets were still the main headgear worn by the Reichswehr. The helmets remained the same until March 1933 when the provincial shields were discontinued in favour of the national tri-color shield. In 1934 the national eagle shield was introduced, and both the tri-color and eagle shields were applied to the helmets. After the development of the new M35 helmet, the WWI helmets were still issued to second line and training troops well into WWII. The Austrian M16 was almost identical to the German version with the positioning of the chinstrap liner rivets being the most readily identifiable difference.