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**Gene T** · 02-08-2012, 02:08 PM

Hi Michael,

These boots had obviously been tried on, so they are not mint per se, but I would still consider them "effectively" unissued, because they clearly haven't been worn in service. Those leather soles and metal toe and heel plates would not look like this if someone had actually walked in them on a street or dirt path for even a few minutes (those visible scuff marks on the soles are more consistent with recent "carpet wear" than vintage "pavement wear"). The uppers show virtually no wear at all.

"Moonmember" is in the same business as Kees - he works in a Dutch recycling center, so these boots were probably never in a collection before they reached him. Whoever had them prior to tossing them in a donation bin would have had zero concern about keeping them in a "mint" state. They were probably tried on briefly for fun by one or more people since their initial discovery before being "binned". Whereas Rich's and Gran Sasso's boots escaped that fate with only their original shelf wear because actual collectors got to them first.

That's how I picture it anyway.

Gene T

**nonobaddog** · 02-10-2012, 03:50 PM

Early NVA hobnailed boots

This will be my first experiment in a long time with posting images. I just wanted to show another example of very similarly constructed boots with DDR issue markings. These are ebay images from an auction of about a month ago. The seller e-mailed me some photos of the ink stamps in the lining, which confirm their DDR manufacture.

These boots have the rounded triangle ‘Gute Zeichen’ and a ‘I in circle’ blue ink stamps, identical to all of the VEB Motor boots. Image #5 has a superimposed red rectangle framing the somewhat faint Gute Zeichen triangle stamp. Also, the lining material is the same pinkish-gray suede pig skin leather.
I did my best to get these boots and was the high bidder for all of 2 seconds at the end. There were at least 2 more bids in the last 5 seconds that followed. They sold for the astonishing (to me) price of 288. Euros. Yikes!

**iannima** · 02-10-2012, 04:41 PM

Originally posted by nonobaddog View Post

They sold for the astonishing (to me) price of 288. Euros. Yikes!

I am frightened to learn that there is somebody out there who evidently loves boots more than I do

...

Thanks for posting these extra photographs. The more I look at boots of this type, the more I confirm my early guess of KVP. I might scout the historical archives...

**Gene T** · 02-11-2012, 01:15 AM

These boots went for big bucks because they can easily pass off as WW II Knobelbecher for most people. They appear to have been built on a wartime last, using wartime patterns and even leftover wartime hardware. Half-lined boots like these were indeed issued late during the war; there was a thread about these on the equipment board not that long ago, but I can't find it anymore. If it weren't for the ink stamps, words like "textbook" and "one-looker" might very well have been thrown at these if they had been shown on that board.

Is that a "5/48" date stamp I see inside the shaft (after "1 29 6", before "111 4")? If so, these are technically not even DDR, since the latter wouldn't come into existence for another 17 months. They are about as early as post-war boots can get, and probably much rarer than wartime boots!

It's very interesting indeed to see the evolutionary link between these and the '54 marked boots.

Gene T

Genosse Iannima: Boot fetishism has been part of human condition since the day Cro-Magnon discovered that wrapping animal skins around his feet and lower legs made him look and feel strangely awesome. You may think that you are alone in your struggles, but in fact you are just more up front about your condition than other sufferers of this incurable disease, most of whom opt to bear the oppressive rise of Sneaker and Sandal Supremacy in pained silence, and studiously avoid the spotlight of Youtube whenever their symptoms flare up.

**Viktor** · 02-11-2012, 04:38 AM

Originally posted by iannima View Post

I am frightened to learn that there is somebody out there who evidently loves boots more than I do

...

Thanks for posting these extra photographs. The more I look at boots of this type, the more I confirm my early guess of KVP. I might scout the historical archives...

Together Genossen you could control every piece of State footwear in our trust, not a step could be made with out the paper work crossing your Directorate's Desk.

**Drugo** · 02-11-2012, 05:29 AM

I find interesting the way they constructed the boot shafts, in two pieces sewn at half height. Was it because of a scarcity of good leather or something else?

**Gene T** · 02-11-2012, 01:13 PM

Drugo,

The shaft proper is made out of a single piece of leather, only the liner part stops halfway down. This is so that the top of the shaft would hold its form better for a "smarter" appearance, while the unlined ankle region would retain its full flexibility for unrestricted movement. You tend to see this feature on boots made out of relatively thin leathers, though it doesn't appear to be the case here. In some dressier boots (including those taller prewar Knobelbecher), they even enclose a stiffening spine inside the back seam of the shaft to help maintain the latter's smooth curvature in the calf area. I am semi curious whether these early postwar proletarian boots made any attempt to revive that foppish feature.

Incidentally, it's pretty interesting how this line of stitching is perfectly straight and horizontal in that first photo that nonobaddog posted, and again perfectly lined up between the front and back boots, creating an optical illusion that almost suggests a photo artifact.

Gene T

**nonobaddog** · 02-11-2012, 09:34 PM

My well-used pair

These are my first pair of this type. They are well used and reconditioned, maybe more than once. The perforations from the original shaft lining stitching and the pull tabs are easily visible. From the location of the pull tab triangles, the boot height may have been originally at least an inch taller. The name “Wünsch” (and something else below that) is inked in the replacement brown cotton lining. The last 3 photos are from the ebay ad. They show the very homely condition as received. It was just dust! All I did was fill them out with newspaper stuffed in old wool socks, then lightly wipe them down with Lexol. Pretty good investment for only 3.50 Euros.

The light was fading fast so I was only able to get 2 usable shots of my VEB Motor boots:

**nonobaddog** · 02-11-2012, 09:56 PM

Markings

Rich Das Reich:
Thank you for posting your VEB "Motor" boots and inspiring this discussion. In your boots the triangular blue 'Gute Zeichen' ink stamp is very clear. Can you make out the numbers below the triangle? I believe this is the Betriebs Nummer, which could be very useful for further research.
Iannima: Your DDR footwear fetish is contagious!

**iannima** · 02-12-2012, 01:29 AM

Originally posted by nonobaddog View Post

Iannima: Your DDR footwear fetish is contagious!

It's not a Fetisch!

...just a deep historical interest

**Rich Das Reich** · 02-12-2012, 08:39 AM

nonobaddog:
Sadly the numbers are unreadable, at least to me. I'll try and get some better photos and post them later. Thanks for posting the photos of your boots!

Regards,
Rich

**Rich Das Reich** · 02-12-2012, 11:16 AM

hi,
These are the best shots i can get of the 'Gute Zeichen' ink stamp, sorry if they are not much help!

regards,
rich

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