Hi All
Another Andys Rubbish and Ramblings for you to endure…. Imperial German headdress has always been a very popular collecting field, the Pickelhaube was popular as a souvenir and many were brought home with returning soldiers, Why were they popular? My feeling is the visual appeal these helmets had, they were absolutely stunning with superb detailing and would look right at home on the mantlepiece in the lounge room etc. They were also a great gift to pass onto family members, friends or girlfriends. The flashy brass fitted 1895 was seemingly the most popular, again due to visual impact. I still encounter helmets to this day that are retained in the family of the person that brought it home, they are retained as a tangible link to the past, many others are in our collections or in museums. My passion for Pickelhauben started as a youngster, recognising my interest in military history and militaria, my mother gave me the book “Military Collectables” one Christmas (Thanks Mum). To me this was an amazing book which was well thumbed and the amazing pictures it contained fuelled my passion, one being a full page featuring two Pickelhauben, something I had never seen first hand and would have been well beyond my reach at that time of my life. This book had such an impact on me, when I entered the workforce my first paycheque actually went on purchasing a Pickelhaube from a dealer here in New Zealand.
I have encountered a lot of people through my interest in Imperial German helmets and headdress, generally at gun shows etc. It is surprising how many have said they played with a Pickelhauben in their childhood, logically, many surviving examples being rather small they were an ideal play thing in times when the historical significance may not hav been appreciated. I have heard tales of helmets bing left in farm sheds or barns, under hedges and one that was used as as a coffin of sorts for a young girls dead magpie, the elderly woman telling me about it said they had the old Prussian helmet in the toy box when she was a child and at the time she thought the eagle adorned leather helmet was perfect for laying her magpie to rest. Reading between the lines, I think Kids may have taken their toll on those once prolific helmets!
In my collection I have three helmets that were recovered from farm buildings over the years, which eventually found their way to me. The condition is average and possibly they are something that would be used as parts helmets, however they have appeal, they are historic and they are definitely interesting. Even in their state of disrepair they were someones souvenir, they came home from the Great War and were someones reminder of their service time or some individual incident or they were passed on as gifts.
This example is a Bavarian helmet, this was found in the North of the North Island and found its way into the collection of a late collecting friend. I had the opportunity to purchase this absolutely untouched helmet some years ago and I have retained it absolutely as found to illustrate the fate of so many of these helmets. Looking at the remaining gilding on the wappen, I don’t think the helmet was ever touched, it was just left other than a bit of cotton remaining on the front peak that may have been applied at some time to retain the long missing visor trim.
One chin strap boss may have some battle damage, a small reminder of where the origins of this helmet lay.
It’s always nice to have a mint example of a helmet, but don’t overlook those that have survived less than ideal conditions.