Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice lightly used example of a German WWII Issue M31 canteen water bottle rig, maker marked MN 43 on the steel cup. Referred to in German as the Feldflasche Modell 1931 (Field bottle model 1931), these are usually found made of aluminum. However towards the end of the war, Aluminum, which was never plentiful in Germany, was in short supply, so the cups and later bottles were switched to enameled steel, with a red primer coat and olive top coat. The inside of the water bottle itself is green, while the outside just has the red primer coat.
The set comes with the correct steel screw top cap, a genuine wool cover with four snaps, and a steel cup. This is held together by the standard black leather belt harness, which has a painted steel belt hook on the back, for attaching to the combat rigging.
MN is the makers abbreviation, which unfortunately is not one that is known, but has been seen on many other examples of German WWII Canteens. 43 of course is for the date 1939. The top cap still has the rubber sealing washer, though we cannot guarantee it still holds water.
Condition of the set is very nice, showing only light use. It does appear to have been exposed to moisture, as the steel snaps on the cover show some rust. The leather is in good shape, but dried out and somewhat delicate. There is a repaired tear right under the buckle roller, across one of the pin holes. Otherwise, the canteen has no issues.