West German Peaked Caps

[Gordon Craig]

Recently I was successful in acquiring a number of West German caps from the 50s and 60s. All in excellent condition. They all came from the same auction house and I suspect someone has sold off at least part of their collection. First up a cap from the Hamburg Wasserschirtzpolizei. This is reall a fine example of a high quality cap. The chin strap is of gold metal wire. The embroidered part of the cap badge is also of gold metal wire although of a finer and higher quality than the chin strap. The cap badge is sewn to the cap band. The peak is a combination of fiber and plastic. The sweat band is of good quality leather. The chin strap buttons have a raised, fouled anchor. The lining is of blue nylon type material. The sweat shield is intact and remnants of the makers crest are there but not decypherable.

Regards,

Gordon

[Gordon Craig]

Side view of the cap. I appologize for the blurry pictures. The chin straps cords and the sliders are all of the excat same colour. They look different because I had to lighten the picture to make it more visible. Since I moved into my new apartment I haven't been able to find agood place to take clear pictures. Either too much light or not enough. These were taken in the sauna!

[Gordon Craig]

Interior of the cap. If anyone recognized the makers makings and can advise who the maker was, it would be greatly appreciated.

[Gordon Craig]

The next cap is also a beauty and one I have not seen before. It is an early post war Lufthansa cap. The cap badge is done in bright, fine gold wire onto a much darker piece of stiff material than the cap body is made of. It is a lighter blue than the previous police cap but not as bright as it appears in the photos. The cap band is of black ridged material. The chin strap is of a silk or silk like material and attached to the cap with plain gold pebbled buttons. The peak construction is lmost identical to that of the previous police cap. The maker is Carl Isken and the date on the sweat shield "1900 - 1950" leads me to believe that this cap was made in 1950. The sweat band is of good quality leather. The cap appears unworn.

[Gordon Craig]

A side view. This is much closer to the actual colour of the cap although still too "blue".

[Gordon Craig]

The interior showing the makers logo on the sweat shield. I have more to post but time does not permit any more right now. Be back later.

[Gordon Craig]

Time to add a couple more hats. This next one is another Hamburg police officers cap. Another high quality cap in a very dark blue colour. It has a very distinct shape similar to the "pinched crown" type caps you see in pictures worn during the Third Reich period. This "pinched crown" look is achieved by bending the metal ring inside the cap. Unlike some caps you see where the owner may have produced this look by bending the metal ring themselves this shaping of the ring was done while the cap was made as it is sewn into the lining of the cap. It is hard to tell if the cap badge is one or two pieces and I have no intentions of removing it to find out. The chin strap is of braided cloth rather than metal. The chin strap buttons are standard silver pebbled ones. The peak seems to be a pressed fibre of some type. The maker is "J. heinr Nordloh Hamburg-Billstedy Hauptst. 51 and it is dated 1966. The sweat band is leather. The cap appears to have been worn but only slightly.

[Gordon Craig]

A side view of the cap. This is much closer to the true colour of the cap.

[Gordon Craig]

Interior of the cap.

[Gordon Craig]

Next up is a hat from the Berlin Schutzpolizei. This cap came with a Berlin Schutzpolizei uniform dated 1975 but I feel it may date from an earlier period than the uniform. Once again the brim is a fibre/plastic combination. The silver around the crown and above and below the cap band is of silver metal wire. The plain plastic chin strap is held in place by two silver pebbled buttons. This is another cap made by Carl Isken. The makers mark is slightly different than the one I posted previously in this thread.

[Gordon Craig]

A side view of the cap.

[Gordon Craig]

Interior showing makers logo on sweat shield.

[Klaus1989]

Nice finds. I like your Wasserschutzpolizei one especially. They are so hard to find! You should add the Police caps to to the West German Polizei thread to serve as a reference. Collecting has slowed down for me and I do not have anything new to add but have quite a few West German Schirmmützen (Feuerwehr, BGS, DB) in my collection.

Most I have already posted before in other threads. I do have NCO rank Deutsche Bundesbahn Beamte Schirmmütze from 1970s that I have not posted but I currently am not in Florida. Will try to photograph it when I get back in December.

regards
Klaus

[Gordon Craig]

Klaus,

Thanks for your comments. I'll post the police caps to the other thread.

Regards,

Gordon

[Huntzman]

Gordon

Nice pickup on the hats. I love the older ones as they have a lot more character to them the green, or now blue, ones.

Congratulations !!

Andrew