Original German WWII 1944 Dated Luftwaffe M43 Einheitsmütze Field Cap with RBNr. – size 57 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice example of a Luftwaffe M43 Einheitsmütze Wool field cap, with a great lightly worn look. The cap is constructed of  Luftwaffe blue/grey Fliegerblau wool, and has the correct “fold down” skirt for colder weather. It features two pebbled aluminum buckles to the front, securing the skirt, and has the correct loops on the underside.

The peak of the cap has a very nice cap eagle with cockade underneath, both machine embroidered and hand sewn on. The interior of cap is a gray rayon material, which is standard for this type of cap. It has light sweat stains around the edge, and the crown still has the original issue markings:

1944
0/0501/0015
57

German RBN Numbers, or Reichsbetriebsnummer, also known as the National Business Number, were an alternative to the 3 letter codes in use late in the war. The first number 0 is the prefix for “industry”, while 0501 is the location code, and manufacturer 0015 in is a specific maker. The records of these are very incomplete, so we have not been able to locate this specific manufacturer.

The visor is still in good condition, though the cardboard stiffener definitely has some ripples, but no breaks. The exterior is in very good condition, though there are some areas of mothing, as shown. There also looks to have been some moth damage to the tri color cockade.

A very nice example, fully marked ready to display!

The M43 Einheitsmütze (Unit Cap) is a variety of “Ski Cap” and was based on the Bergmütze (Mountain Hat) used by Austrian and German Gebirgsjäger (Mountain Troops) during WWI. Germany had adopted it in 1915, and after the war it spread throughout the military.

The skirt that surrounds the cap is made in the same wool as the cap, and can be folded down over the ears, though this was rarely done outside of the Mountain troops, which had a double-thickness skirt. The skirt has a small dip in the front quarter with a divide secured by one aluminum button which is covered by an embroidered cockade. The small section in the front quarter was built shorter to show the insignia, and cover the wearer’s chin or mouth, without disturbing breathing by covering the nose. There were also later M43 caps, such as those used by the DAK, that omitted the skirt entirely, as it had little use in the desert heat.