German airtight wooden ammunition crate a Luftdichter patronenkasten which held 1500 rounds of 7.92mm ammunition taken from vehicle used by 116th Panzer Division recovered from near Houffalize in the Ardennes forest,1944-1945

This is a German airtight wooden ammunition crate a Luftdichter patronenkasten which held 1500 rounds of 7.92mm ammunition. The box is in very nice condition the wood still retains a most of its original brown stain finish which is dirty brown and discolored it has some damage and even has the original tin cover inside to make it the air tight version is in place the crate is still very solid not braking up or falling apart it had wood worm but not to much and has been treated a well preserved box which has a small maker mark on the side as well it has both its hinges in nice condition and work the locks one still work fine the other is still and does not move but the lid opens and closes fine it has its metal carry handles.On the inside has some knocks and marks from use but nothing bad it is a nice example of this unusual ammunition crate.The crate along with other parts were taken from abandoned German vehicles after the war in the village of Mont which is just North of Houffalize all the vehicles belonged to the 116th Panzer Division. It was taken of the tank or vehicle properly in around 1946-1948 by a local farmer and was used on his farm for many years until it was found by a local collector who had them in his private collection until 2020 when it left the Ardennes area for the first time since the war. This is a very nice relic from the Ardennes Forest campaign during the battle of the Bulge in the winter of 1944-1945.This real bit of history from this famous battle which was Hitlers last offensive in the West.

The 116th Panzer Division, also known as the "Windhund (Greyhound) Division", was an armoured formation that was constituted in the Rhineland and Westphalia areas of western Germany in March 1944 from the remnants of the 16th Panzergrenadier Division, and the 179th Reserve Panzer Division. The 16th had suffered heavy casualties in combat on the Eastern Front near Stalingrad, and the 179th was a second-line formation that had been on occupation duty in France since 1943.

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