Originally posted by gnadenlose
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An Estonian made cup Tav40 (Tartu Alumiiniumi Vabrik = Tartu Aluminium Factory, Tartu being largest city in Southern Estonia), almost identical to German ones. Probably produced during the short period in 1940 for Red Army (Estonia was under soviet occupation that year). I also have few canteens without covers and straps and have never seen complete set.
This "Tav"40 canteen was found last summer in an old house during demolition works. Canteen had been hidden to the house together with messtin, which had a lot of engravings on it (soldier's name, dates and KF-camp names). On the cap of the canteen there's also an initial of the same soldier. It is really hard to say, wether this piece is custom made or did they originally come out of factory like this. The material of the wool cover is very similar to some German uniform fabric, but the stitching and small sized studs look much like custom made. The rivet from the cap is missing and the only strap is that brown shorty around it's neck. The leather is much softer than German ones. I guess this canteen doesn't have much to do with German equipment, but as it's elements are similar to them and I have never seen an original complete "Tav" canteen this far, I thought it might be interesting to see for canteen collectors.
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