Tearing fabric pieces, and cutting colorful panels off of downed aircraft, was very popular on all sides during WW1 and WW2. It was a trophy to the victor and a proof of claim to the person who shoot it down.
During WW1 the airplane was a new concept and most soldiers had never seen one before. Not only was the common solider very fascinated when he came across the wreckage of a plane, but it was easy for him to cut off a piece, fold it up and send it home as a souvenir.
Manfred von Richthofen had a room full of fabric pieces that he had sent home. These included tail numbers, cut from the planes of which he’d shot down.
Lets see what is out there in your collections.
I’ll start off with an aluminum panel cut from a Me-109 in North Africa. Note that the aircraft was originally painted green and that the tan color was painted over the green, probably in theater. This two piece sample is screwed down to a modern piece of wood.
During WW1 the airplane was a new concept and most soldiers had never seen one before. Not only was the common solider very fascinated when he came across the wreckage of a plane, but it was easy for him to cut off a piece, fold it up and send it home as a souvenir.
Manfred von Richthofen had a room full of fabric pieces that he had sent home. These included tail numbers, cut from the planes of which he’d shot down.
Lets see what is out there in your collections.
I’ll start off with an aluminum panel cut from a Me-109 in North Africa. Note that the aircraft was originally painted green and that the tan color was painted over the green, probably in theater. This two piece sample is screwed down to a modern piece of wood.
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