super LAH panzer grouping

[Ilse]

Ss

at the SOS i saw at least 3 dozen SS helmets for sale...and an associate of mine bought one for 5k....of course all of these were not perfect but the perceived value of SS helmets is no where near what the availabiity vs price should be...i paid less than that for this group.


Most of the SS helmets found at the SOS were bad fakes. The running joke was "I heard about 1 real SS helmet...somewhere over there..." I never found it.

Derek

[Mike Pinkus]

there were plenty of real ones...problem was a lot had been messed with...regardless...the point of the comment was that there are far more readily available items (like ss helmets) that command much more money than truly very rare items (like this paper group) ...and that rarity alone is not the only determing factor for pricing/perceived value....

[SJP]

These documents to Gunter Schmidt are special.Although they were issued after the Kharkov offensive Schmidt was KIA on 12/7/43 the single greatest day of amour conflict in history.(IMO)

He was in one of 4 Pz IV knocked out blunting elements of the 5th Guards tank army against Peiper's bataillon.

A great read is in Agte's Peiper work.

Thanks Mike.
__________________________________________________ ___________
Cheers Steve

[Schnellmeyer]

Very interesting to note that Hans Astheger is mentioned being with 6 Kompanie when Lehmann's book on the Leibstandarte lists Hans Pfeiffer as CO of the 6 Kompanie and Astheger with 7 Kompanie. I believe Hans Astheger was the CO of 6 Kompanie during the battle for Kharkov and Rudolf von Ribbentrop who CO during the battle of Kursk.

[markus]

Wow, nice to see this thread again after such a long time. A really neat group. I wonder where it resides today?

I just held a PAB doc in hands this morning signed by Schönberger on Aug. 08, 1943, for a SS-Schütze serving in 13. (s.) SS-Panz. Rgt. 1 "LSSAH". The man also served on the crew of Wittmann for some time.

Cheers,
Markus

[Bill Hughes]

I'd disagree with you there Mike. It's a pretty standard panzer grouping as far that goes, an EK2, WB and PAB doc plus some other paperwork. It shouldn't be any rarer than any other panzer regiment either, the difference is in the popularity of the LSSAH and thus it's monetary value, not in it's rarity.

I'd swap you five groups like that for a similar one to Pz.abt.40 or pz.abt.211 any day

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Here is a different take. I collect Knight Cross signatures, especially Waffen SS. I would give some of my body parts, but have already sold all I can spare for Schönberger's autograph awarded KC posthumously Dec 20 1943 as SS-Obersturmbannführer and CO 1st SS_Pz.Rgt., 1st SS-Pz. Div. "LSSAH",4th Panzer Army,Army Group " South", Russian Front


He was KIA'd 20.11.1943 bei Brussilow,Ostfront


Cheers
Bill

[SJP]

http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...d.php?t=528078
Cheers Steve