Original WWI German CAMOUFLAGE HELMET (Stahlhelm M16) Certified By The Gettysburg Museum Of History

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Original WWI German CAMOUFLAGE HELMET (Stahlhelm M16) Certified By The Gettysburg Museum Of History. The first “modern” steel helmets were introduced by the French army in early 1915 and were shortly followed by the British army later that year. With plans on the drawing board, experimental helmets in the field, (“Gaede” helmet), and some captured French and British helmets the German army began tests for their own steel helmet at the Kummersdorf Proving Grounds in November, and in the field in December 1915. An acceptable pattern was developed and approved and production began at Eisen-und Hüttenwerke, AG Thale/Harz, in the spring of 1916. These first modern M16 helmets evolved into the M18 helmets by the end of WWI. The M16 and M18 helmets remained in usage through-out the Weimar Reichswehr era and on into the early years of the Third Reich until the development of the smaller, lighter M35 style helmet in June 1935. Of Note: In July 1918 Chief of the General Staff of the Field Army, Erich Ludendorff issued a directive which clearly laid out the camouflage colors and pattern that was to be applied to all helmets in the field. The directive also included the amounts of paint that 1,000 helmets would require as five kilograms, (11Lbs), each of, green, ochre yellow and rust brown, and two kilograms, (4.4 Lbs), of black paint. The stamped, sheet steel construction, helmet retains a good portion of its hand painted camouflage. The camouflage paint is in shades of dark green and red in a random patch pattern with the colors being separated by black stripes. The helmet has a crack from battle damage (see photos). The helmet has both the dome headed chinstrap retaining rivets, both of the extended ventilation side lugs and two of the  three of the flat headed liner retaining rivets. The interior of the helmet has the leather retaining band intact. The leather pads of the liner is now gone.  The interior has a stamped maker and size code “E.T. 64”  indicating manufacture by Eisen-und Hüttenwerke, AG Thale/Harz size 64.   Very nice example of an M16 that would display very nice. An honest untouched German helmet.  Gettysburg Museum Certified (COA) provided. Please also see our other items on our web page. VERY NICE CAMO PAINT.