Original German WWII Named Army Heer Infantry Officers Schirmmütze Visor Cap with Embroidered Eagle - Size 57

Original Item: Only One Available. This cap is a great example of a German WWII Wehrmacht Heer Army Infantry Officer's Schirmmütze (visor cap), and it really looks the business. It still has the original crown stiffener installed, so the sides have not sunken down excessively over the years, but it still has developed the lovely "saddle-form" shape that everyone loves. It features lovely feldgrau (field gray) "doeskin" weave wool construction with a flaschengrün (dark bottle-green) "badge cloth" band and a traditional high forward crown. The cap also has matching Weiß (white) piping along the top edge and flanking either side of the band, the Corps Color (Waffenfarbe) for Infanterie (Infantry) and Motorisiert Infanterie (Motorized Infantry). It has the correct silver bullion chin strap, indicating that it is for an officer.

It is decorated with a well detailed hand embroidered silver bullion eagle insignia on the peak and and an open cast aluminum oak leaf and acorn wreath with an attached plated metal tri-color cockade on the band. The wreath is still bright, while the eagle shows some minor oxidation and fraying, and the cockade shows oxidation to the plating as well. The red felt insert inside the cockade is present and still vibrant. The chin strap is attached with the standard pebbled buttons on either side of the cap, and shows very little wear. The vulcanfibre visor has a smooth black leather-look upper, exhibiting just a bit of wear along the edge and is checkered beige on the underside. The top shows a lovely pattern of very fine crazing and checking to the gloss enamel finish, and the visor is still firmly attached to the cap.

The inside of the cap is lined with lovely light aqua rayon faux silk twill, showing light staining from use. The diamond celluloid "sweat shield" on the top is still present with just a bit of wear and no cracking, and the attachment stitching is fully intact. There is no maker mark, just Stirndruckfrei / Deutsches Reichspatent in silver print, indicating it is a "Forehead Pressure Free" design covered by a German patent. There is also a small name tag reading Rocholl in the slot.

The sweatband in this cap is made from genuine natural finished leather, and is still in very good condition, soft and supple with very little tearing. On the underside it is stamped with a faint size 57, with no other markings. We did notice when looking for markings that the fiber band that supports the cap band has cracked into pieces a bit towards the rear, visible in the pictures. We can also feel that there are cracks in other areas, as this material becomes very brittle over time.

Overall condition is very good, showing light to moderate use during the war. It has just a few moth nips, and no major wear, though there does look to have been a blue substance that dripped on a few parts of the crown.

A lovely well-preserved example of a classic hat worn by German Army Infantry Officers in WWII. Very impressive and ready to display!

The German Schirmmütze Visor Cap:
The visor cap (Schirmmütze) was an important part of the headgear worn by German uniformed military, civil, paramilitary and political organizations during the Third Reich. This was the standard cloth headgear worn as a part of the service uniform. Visor caps were worn outdoors as well as indoors, and were often required to be worn by all personnel on duty. Visor caps were made in versions specific to each organization and were often further differentiated through the use of insignia, colored piping, or style of chin cord, to indicate rank, role or branch. The insignia used on these caps ranged from simple stamped metal emblems, to elaborate hand embroidery. Visor caps were issued to enlisted soldiers and NCOs in the military and in some other organizations. Officers had to purchase their own hats, and lower ranks could choose to purchase caps that were of a higher quality than the rather basic, issue examples. The private purchase caps were generally made in very high quality, with fine materials. A wide variety of fabrics were used, from Trikot and doeskin, to heavy wool, or even lightweight white fabric for summer wear. In the military, issue of these caps was generally suspended shortly after the outbreak of the war, but they continued to be worn by some troops until the end of the war.