Original Japanese WWII Type 90 Army Helmet with Officer’s Star, Complete Liner and Chinstrap with Kanji Markings - Tetsubo

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a wonderful example of the classic Japanese Type 90 Tetsubo (鉄帽 - "steel cap") army helmet, also colloquially called the tetsukabuto ( 鉄 冑 "steel helmet") by Japanese troops. This example has an officer’s star insignia attached at the front instead of the standard star, which would denote wear by an officer.

Features include:
- Original officer’s metal star applied to front. Star is a bit loose. It appears to have been attached to the liner. 
- Excellent complete three pad leather liner, with 3 of the 3 pads still present. The leather is a bit dry-rotted in spots, but is still solid, with the original string linking the pads together.
- Original tie down chinstrap still fully connected but very worn.
- Original paint with the expected wear and oxidation, showing the "blue" manganese steel underneath.
- Approximate size is 7 1/4 (58cm)
- Kanji character 大 for Large is stamped into the rear metal rim and remnants of the white painting of the character is visible.

A very nice condition helmet, with much of the original paint, with the expected wear and chips from service. These helmets are continuing to become harder and harder to find on the market, especially once with complete liner and chin strap systems. This is the first Officer’s helmet we’ve offered. This example is worthy of any WWII collection.

The Japanese Type 90 Helmet
The Imperial Japanese Army was the official ground based armed force of Imperial Japan from 1871 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of War, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor of Japan as supreme commander of the army and the navy. Later an Inspectorate General of Military (Army) Aviation, became the third agency with oversight over the army.

During wartime or national emergencies, the nominal command functions of the emperor would be centralized in an Imperial General Headquarters (IGHQ), an ad-hoc body consisting of the chief and vice chief of the Army General Staff, the minister of war, the chief and vice chief of the Naval General Staff, the inspector general of military aviation, and the inspector general of military training.

The Japanese Tetsubo, also colloquially called the tetsukabuto ("steel helmet") by troops, was a mainstay of the Imperial Japanese Army from its creation in 1932. Its construction from inferior chrome-molybdenum steel limited its ability to protect the wearer from gunfire or shrapnel.