Original German Early WWII Heer Army 24th Infantry Regiment (Regensburg) Original German WWII Kriegsmarine Navy Greek Occupation Personal Photo Album with Cover – 77 Photos Original Items

Original Item: One-of-a-kind-set. Here we have a wonderful personal photo album, with what looks to be all photographs they took themselves, with a few professional shots. It is covered with a lovely textured and embossed leatherette cover, and there appears to have been a device attached to the upper left but it is unfortunately no longer present. This has the correct “closed wing” Wehrmachtadler eagle decal as used on Army Helmets. The lower right is embossed in silver with Meine Dienstzeit Erinnerungen. The album measures approximately 12” x 8 ¾”.

A total of 77 photographs fill the pages of this album, making it a treasure-trove of images taken from the viewpoint of a young, patriotic German sailor. These are contained on 21 pages, which are not captioned, and most pages are separated by “onion skin” separators. Some are glued directly to the pages, while others use corner tabs. The photos show mostly Navy uniforms (both summer white and field gray), as well as artillery pieces, and some casual photos. There are a lot of photos of sailors on “liberty” and appear to be taking in the sights of Greece, most likely Crete.

Historical records like this album have become priceless time capsules that provide an incomparable level of insight into the individual experience of the Second
World War, now that almost eighty years have passed.

The older albums such as these usually withstand the ravages of time. The leather or fabric covers may wear, but the pages stay well intact. The black paper albums of the early 20th century are more fragile, while the glue from magnetic albums can damage photographs. And, as with all old photographs, keep albums in a safe, climate controlled environment.