Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice lightly worn example of a German WWII Heer Army Feldgendarmerie (Military Police) EM-NCO M38 overseas cap (Schiffchen). The overseas cap, nicknamed in German military slang as Schiffchen, or literally “little ship” as it resembled an up-turned row-boat, was standard issue for all branches of the Heer.
This example is constructed of a field gray (feldgrau) wool exterior, with a gray cotton canvas lining. It features a fine machine embroidered eagle on the lower front, embroidered in white on a gray backing. There is no cockade, and the top seams feature Orange-gelb (Orange-yellow) piping, the Corps Color (Waffenfarbe) for recruiting and replacement (Wehrersatzwesen) and Military Police (Feldgendarmerie). We have seen some examples like this, while others just have the soutache piping at the front. These seem to be somewhat hard to come by, and this is the first example of a Feldgendarmerie overseas cap that we have seen.
The inside of the cap has two faded rectangular stamps on the inside, the top of which is still partially legible:
ROBERT LUBSTEIN
BERLIN ??????
Condition overall is very good, showing light wear in areas, and some light mothing an wear to the exterior shell on the right side, with two holes present. This is limited to the fuzzy “nap” of the fabric for the most part. There is also some staining to the interior lining.
A very nice Military Police M38 overseas cap, ready to add to your collection!