IrishGunner

Enough corroboration for me - thanks Chip! Now to see if Reserve Fuss-Artillerie Regt. 3 was on the Eastern Front in April 1915.

Another and the caption

Close-ups

Ok, what I do know: Fuss-Artillerie with a 15cm sFH 1902, #3 on the shoulder straps, "Res 3" and "Apr 15" in the caption. So, I believe these guys to be Reserve Fuss-Artillerie Regiment 3, wearing the 1907/10 feldgrau tunics (obviously posing for the picture). I haven't gone further into the confusing - albeit interesting - world of Fuss-Artillerie history until I get some corroboration. Also, would be nice to get some help deciphering the rest of the caption. Nothing written on the back to help. Curiously, the man sitting in the lower right has a Landwehr cross on his lower cockade to his feldmutze. I couldn't get a good scan/blow-up, but you can see it clearly with a 3x6 magnifying lens. None of the others seem to have the cross. The #3 can be seen on almost all the straps. Scans below.

Eerily looks like a Polish officer I know... :unsure:

Those are some confident looking warriors. Are those a couple liter steins in the middle? Well deserved beers, I'm sure.

Chip, you are correct; the artillery had its own observers and commo - that's why I expected to see an artillery shoulder strap. Surely this is a posed photo; it doesn't look like he could "observe" much from this position. So, I wasn't really expecting a great story. C'est la guerre; c'est la vie. It still is a good card because it's caused me to "study" some more. And that's what it's all about for me at this point.

Thanks, Chip. I thought you might have some insight to the shoulder strap. I knew this was probably a post-war series - a lot of those type cards floating around. Hmm, Telegraphentruppen, huh? So, despite the caption, possibly nothing to do with artillery at all. Guess now I have to read about the Telegraphentruppen.

Closer view of the shoulder strap:

I need a little help understanding this photo post card I received today. I bought it because of it's caption: "Artillerie-Beobachtungsposten mit der Batterie in telefonischer Verbindung" = "Artillery Observation Post connected to the Battery by telephone" I thought it an interesting shot of how an observer might communicate with his battery. Upon receipt, I was able to recognize that the objects on top of the dug-out are two shakos. Of course, this made me go "huh?" Then I could see closer the shoulder strap and it looks nothing like the expected artillery strap. So, what do you all make of this...especially does anyone recognize the shoulder strap? Is this artillery observer supporting Jagers or Schutzen because of the shakos? Anyone able to give me the nomenclature for the telephone? BTW: the back is blank except that it was printed in Berlin.

Even for single medals I like the tatty old ribbons. Maybe it's a false sense of security, but makes me think they truly were held by the recipient at one time.

I agree with Hardy; the order immediately put me off this one. And that 1898 Jubilee.

My contribution would be very short - just that one patch! And a couple pocket badges - one for the Fuehringsakademie and one for the General Staff. That's about it for my Bundeswehr insignia. Now I do have a Slovenia patch I'm pondering what it might be... :speechless:

Nah... just shows that we can't know everything. If it weren't for the velcro, I would've thought more along the fantasy lines too.

Okay, here is a photo of a BW soldier wearing the patch! And now I'm pretty sure which officer gave me this patch!

Well, if wikipedia is to be believed; I've found it! Verteidigungsbezirkskommandos 65 - vicinity of Munich. Part of the territorial forces. http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wehrbereichskommando

Gordon; reverse of the patch. It's a velcro attachment and includes the piece to sew on one's sleeve. The left side id the patch itself and the right is the part for the sleeve. It's this velcro attachment that leads me to believe this is an official uniform patch (vice a fantasy piece). I am almost certain I received this from one of two Bundeswehr officers I've known - both from Bavaria; but can't remember exactly when, where or why.

Beautiful. Well done.

Chris, I am scouring my notes on Canal du Nord (I have researched a captain of the Grenadier Guards who was KIA in this battle - I have his Victory Medal) and so far, I've found a reference to the German 1st Guards Res Div, 2nd Guards Res Div, and 3rd Res Div in the area. Unfortunately, I didn't put in my notes the source reference, but I think it was from a history of the Canadians from their official archives. Let me dig some more this evening (have some tasks to complete for the wife and am only checking this while have a bit of lunch).

Here's my 5-clasp Victory Medal; a 1st Division soldier with Montdidier-Noyon, Aisne-Marne, St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne, Defensive Sector. Alongside is a 3-clasp; Aisne-Marne, St. Mihiel, Defensive Sector. Not sure what unit - certainly not a full Division's award.

Jonas, there definitely is a connection to the Oberbayern Polizei; I just am not sure why I would have come in possession of a police patch. Guess it would help if I could remember where the heck I got the thing. Oh, well...:speechless:

No Bundeswehr experts out there? Hardy? :unsure:

First, you are not intruding at all - all of us are willing and happy to help. Anything can - and is frequently - faked. There are so many of these buckles/belts on the internet for sale that my instincts say there must be a lot of "reproductions" or "copies". I wouldn't think there would be a huge market for them in Afghanistan, but then again, if ISAF soliders are willing to pay $25 for one, then I'd be willing to bet some enterprising person has carted a trunk load (donkey load?) of these copies into the country to pawn off on the gringos. Of course, there may be many left over from the Soviet occupation, but realistically one has to question just how many that could be genuinely from that period and were worn my Soviet soldiers in Afghanistan. Did Afghans really hold on to large quantities? Again, my instincts suggest that isn't too likely. Of course, this is just speculation on my part; however, I'd be a bit wary of saying the majority of these pieces are truly from the Soviet occupation and many are probably "imported" - a lot of those imports are probably genuine, but some could be later copies. Although, you could say one of these is from the '80s and you obtained it in Afghanistan, it is unlikely in my opinion that a Soviet soldier actually wore it in Afghanistan. What does all that mean - $25 is too much in my opinion for a piece that I am certain is genuine. Of course, you get to say that it came from Afghanistan, which is a novelty; however, at best, I'd pay $10 for a buckle and belt that I was reasonably sure is genuine. I just paid less than that for a buckle/belt that is dated 1978 and I'm certain is genuine. If you can find belts with date stamps - the year will be normal numbers although any words will be in Cyrillic - and the buckle isn't too scratched-up, I'd say a max of $10 would be okay. The difference between a shiny buckle and a subdued buckle - is exactly as you'd expect for the US military; one is garrison and the other for the field uniforms. Oh, and please don't try to "sneak" any photos onto a government computer; trying to figure out the quality of a "souvenir" isn't worth your career. Stay safe.

Lukasz, bardzo dzekuje for your comments! It's nice to know this could be genuine.

But why the swords? Combination of IC and FKK?