Featured Relics & Militaria
This is a totally rare German JG 26 schlageter [fighter squadron] vehicle pennant which is dated 1942 and with maker stamp as well all partly clear to see
The pennant still has its eagle and JG26 marking on each side again mostly clear to see, the pennant is very dirty and discoloured and with some damage from being buried at some point and later recovered but overall it is in very solid condition and has been carefully cleaned. The pennant still retains some original colours and is still perfect for display or any collection not braking up or falling apart and is 21 inches long by 11 inches wide at the wide point.
The pennant was found on a flea market in Flensburg there location of there final base in 1945.The time spent by Jagdgeschwader 26 (JG 26) "Schlageter" at Flensburg Airfield lasted just five chaotic days, from May 3 to May 8, 1945. Despite the brief timeframe, their presence marked a significant and dramatic chapter in the final dissolution of the Luftwaffe
By May 1945, JG 26 was a fragment of its former self. Pushed out of airfield after airfield by the rapid British advance across northwest Germany, the wing's remaining Focke-Wulf Fw 190D "Dora" fighters landed at Flensburg. The airfield was packed with hundreds of retreating German aircraft, personnel, and members of the newly formed Flensburg Government. Fuel was so desperately scarce that routine operations were impossible, and many aircraft had to be towed into hiding places around the airfield perimeter using horses or manual labor to save petrol
Even on the day of their arrival, May 3, 1945, the war was not entirely over for some pilots. Elements of the wing flew their very last combat missions of World War II from Flensburg. Elite pilots, including highly decorated aces, engaged in final, hopeless dogfights against Royal Air Force (RAF) Hawker Tempests scouring northern Germany.
This is a near complete but empty and inert totally rare Japanese late war, emergency production rifle grenade which has been crudely made with basic steel case with a screw in base.
The case is missing its wood or bakelite-style plug with hole for the fuse at one end. And its small plug at the other. The grenade has none of its original black paintwork or original colouring. The steel case is pitted but solid, with no rust-through holes, and has been carefully cleaned. In nice relic condition but has corroded slightly but it is sturdy, not friable, and ideal for display or any militaria collection. The rifle grenade was recovered in the 1980's and has been in a private collection ever since it was originally found in an old Japanese defensive position on the island of Guam from the 1944 battle in the Pacific. It comes with 2xA5 laminated information cards with many pictures and map.
The Battle of Guam (21 July – 10 August 1944) was the successful American amphibious campaign to recapture the island of Guam from the Empire of Japan. Guam had been a prewar US territory since 1898 but was captured by the Japanese in December 1941. The 21-day battle was a key pillar of Operation Forager during the wider Pacific campaign of World War II.
Recently Added Relics & Militaria
German double decal (remains of decals) transitional M40 helmet (aluminium liner band ) from the 44th Infantry Division, recovered from outside of Brody, Western Ukraine
Helmet in fantastic solid relic condition with loads of original paint remaining , also the aluminium liner band with chin strap fixing points. Battle damage to front of rim - a fantastic addition to a collection
The German 44th Infantry Division, an Austrian unit known as the "Hoch- und Deutschmeister," advanced as part of the Wehrmacht's 6th Army along the southern flank of the breakthrough sector toward the Brody-Dubno axis. During the intense engagements between 23 and 30 June 1941, the division was rapidly brought forward to secure the vulnerable southern corridor created by the fast-moving spearheads of Panzer Group 1. Tasked with protecting these supply lines from being severed by the massive Red Army counter-offensive, the 44th Division played a critical defensive role, digging in to absorb and repel heavy, uncoordinated flank attacks launched by the Soviet 8th and 15th Mechanised Corps.
MG34 Gurttrommel 34 recovered from positions occupied by SS Panzer Grenadier Regiment 21 on the slopes of Hill 112 Normandy.
Finished in Dunkelgrau (dark/panzer Gray) and traces of white stencilling to the lid with a bullet hole in the side – a fantastic relic from the battlefield.
magazine is in super relic condition with lots of original paint remaining. The lid still opens but side cover does not.
The fighting involving SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 21 (of the 10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg) on Hill 112 was some of the most brutal, close-quarters infantry combat of the entire Normandy campaign. Commanded by SS-Obersturmbannführer Otto Paetsch, the regiment was tasked with holding the absolute centre of the German line on the hill's forward slopes and plateau.
The unit's defining crucible occurred during Operation Jupiter on 10–11 July 1944, when they faced the main assault of the British 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division. The Gurttrommel 34 (belt drum) is a 50 round ammunition container designed for the MG34 & later MG42 machine guns. Introduced to increase infantry mobility during assaults its purpose was to hold a tightly coiled 50 round belt, to stop it twisting or snagging when the gunner was on the move. The gun’s internal feed mechanism pulled the belt out of the drum; to load it the gunner coiled the belt into the drum manually – there is no internal spring mechanism.
AMERICAN BAR RIFLE MAGAZINE RECOVERED FROM A ROADSIDE DITCH ON THE LONGVILLY ROAD, NEAR BASTOGNE IN THE ARDENNES FOREST. FROM THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE IN THE WINTER OF 1944-45
The battle on the Longvilly road took place on the 19 December 1944, when an American force under Colonel Cherry came under attack by German Panzer Lehr Division along the road between Longvilly and Bastogne. The Americans lost around 200 vehicles in the battle.
A rare item to find due to the thin steel .
The magazine is in solid, relic condition with the base missing.
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This is a totally rare find from the battlefield a armour piercing projectile 8.8cm, KwK36, L/56 double driving band which was fired by German Tiger 1 tank which is complete but its ballistic cap has squashed properly from being dumped in the lake. The projectile is in nice condition with no base plug or markings on the bottom but is still has some original black paintwork remains it still has its pair of steel colour driving bands in place and complete the outer case is only lightly pitted with no holes but does have a little bit of damage and pitting but nothing to bad The projectile is completely empty and inert it has been well cleaned and overall perfect condition for display and very rare one for any collection. The projectile was recovered from a lake East of Bastogne in the Ardennes Forest from the Battle of the Bulge in the winter of 1944-45. The projectile comes with 2xA5 laminated information cards with many pictures and map also drawings.
The projectile was recovered from a lake which was used as a dump site for battlefield clearance the area where the lake is, was attacked by the German 26th Volksgrenadier Division and elements of the Panzer Lehr Division they had the only Panzer 4 tanks in the area.