HI, I`ve just steped into a FJ helmet, with ss decal in one side, and Luftwaffe decal in the other. I suspect that could be a ss battalion 500 helmet.But I haven`t seen a close enought photo of that units helmet to be sure.It aparently comes from Croatia,wich could correspond,but... Do you have any idea of what it could be. Charlie
Yes, it could be but I would voice a note of caution here. From Croatia... rite area, 500 SS para Btn saw action at the Bosnian town of Drvar. But, All the photos I have of the operation show NO markings on the helmets at all. Also why would it bear Luftwaffe markings? The unit was part of the Waffen-SS not the Luftwaffe... What colour is the Helmet? The pictures from Drvar show troops in what seems to be a very dark gray Helmet, with no markings... I would advise caution and obtain some pics, especially of the inside, and make sure they are colour ones. Look for any scrathes that bisect the decals and run through the helmet paintwork. But dont forget... there was only 600 men in the 500 SS Para... Is it offered for sale? How much are they asking? Hope that helps...
For Helmet collectors this is one of the rarest of all beasts, a real one would cost a fortune. I have never seen or heard of a real one as far as i know not even any of the leading helmet collectors around the globe have one,without provenance i wouldn't touch it, Paul
It is a fake, well, thats my opinion anyhow. As RB pointed out SS FJ didn't have decals on their helmets. The other thing is any item so rare would be very unlikely to pop up. I would want to actually have this thing in my hands so I could ahve a really good look at the decals, possibly even try to look under the paint work to see if it is a second coat. Hell, if it came down to it I would give the thing to my brother so he could take it to his university lab and test it.
Found this in a Fallschirmjager forum... SS FJ Helmet topic "But who has admitted that FJ helmets issued to SS-Fallschirmjäger-Bataillon 500/600 could have had SS runic decals applied by individual SS paratroopers? It is of course possible that one of the estimated 3500 SS men who passed through the ranks of the SS Para Bn during its eighteen month existence could have done something like this but is it probable? Not one of the former SS paratroopers with whom I and other serious students of this unit have spoken or corresponded ever recalled or agreed that they saw any comrades wearing jump helmets with SS runes. I know as well as anyone that soldiers often break the rules regarding uniforms, equipment and, to some extent, insignia. There is a genuine photograph of an SS para with a Waffen-SS arm eagle sewn to the sleeve of his LW jump smock. But it is asking a lot to believe that individual Waffen-SS men in Yugoslavia in 1944 and then on the Eastern Front in 1945 could have obtained the decals in question from a helmet factory and applied them. Some of them certainly removed LW decals from their helmets while others didn't bother. But given the testimony of veterans, the lack of photographic evidence and the lack, too, of any original FJ helmet with an authentic SS decal affixed between October 1943 and May 2nd 1945, I would not buy an FJ helmet with a runic decal." This is from a guy who knows several ex-SS FJ and the former commander of SS PAra btn 500/600. Its an interesting topic to gauge collectors opinions on this topic...
