Bob,
The overcoat theory was apparently based on a simple typographic error on Jack Pia's book on SS regalia. Someone, somewhere posted a thread showing how the captions to the pictures on a spread in the book had been juxtaposed and the attribution crept into the collecting world.
The cotton armband you post is interesting in that I had always presumed these to be for the early brown shirt. What it is doing floating around after 1940 is anyone's guess.
All the examples I have seen had the paper labels and I had always thought, perhaps erroneously, that they had been badged up after the war to add a couple of bucks to the value. Both armbands and SS paper tags used to be relatively commmon. I remember several rolls of paper RZM tags at the Islington market decades ago. I'm sure they are now stuck on any number of items, real and repro.
If they are right then we are seeing an armband from 1936 and one from 1940 or later, so they were used over a period of time. But, barely anyone was wearing an armband after 1940. Perhaps they were for civilian or non-members of the SS employed in the organisation.
I'm not sure I'll ever be convinced of their authenticity. I have not seen a single photo of them in use and believe me I've pored over thousands of pictures. But, usually as soon as you say that a picture pops up out of nowhere.
Derek
The overcoat theory was apparently based on a simple typographic error on Jack Pia's book on SS regalia. Someone, somewhere posted a thread showing how the captions to the pictures on a spread in the book had been juxtaposed and the attribution crept into the collecting world.
The cotton armband you post is interesting in that I had always presumed these to be for the early brown shirt. What it is doing floating around after 1940 is anyone's guess.
All the examples I have seen had the paper labels and I had always thought, perhaps erroneously, that they had been badged up after the war to add a couple of bucks to the value. Both armbands and SS paper tags used to be relatively commmon. I remember several rolls of paper RZM tags at the Islington market decades ago. I'm sure they are now stuck on any number of items, real and repro.
If they are right then we are seeing an armband from 1936 and one from 1940 or later, so they were used over a period of time. But, barely anyone was wearing an armband after 1940. Perhaps they were for civilian or non-members of the SS employed in the organisation.
I'm not sure I'll ever be convinced of their authenticity. I have not seen a single photo of them in use and believe me I've pored over thousands of pictures. But, usually as soon as you say that a picture pops up out of nowhere.
Derek
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