M35 DD unit marking.

[kerryboo]

I have posted this for views on authenticity on yhe Helmets Forum, but it was suggested that this is the forum to get information on the unit concerned. The helme is marked in the rear skirt, with;-
Thiele
Aufl. Abt. 161.
Can anybody give me information on the unit? The helmet, like thousands of others, came from the old Soviet Union.

[Larry deZeng]

It belonged to the 61. Inf.Div.:

http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/...en61.htm#Aufkl
http://www.axishistory.com/index.php?id=1461

There are two German language histories of the Division by Walther Hubatsch and these would be your only source for published details on the Abteilung. If you are into microfilm, then you would be able to order the surviving divisional records on microfilm from the U.S. National Archives in WashDC.