Luftwaffe Luftwaffe Pennant

[Staff Sgt Jock MacSplock]

This is one of my first posts so hope I've stuck this in the right place!

I'd be interested to hear any views on this pennant. It was bought from a dealer who told me that he had acquired it from a lady who had served in the ATS in Germany in 1945 and had brought it back as a souvenir. He thought it had belonged to a Signals Unit but I've never been able to trace the colours to any.

The pennant is brown and black, and on a metal frame which comprises two pole fixings that are angled inwards. When the fixings are straightened out to take the pole, the effect is that it makes the metal frame rigid which I think is the point. There is a machine-stitched luftwaffe eagle on both sides made of what looks like a felt-type material. The whole thing is quite big - approx 90cms x 50cms. The ruler in the picture is 45cms long.

I'll try to post a few photos but I think I'm size-limited because I'm new!

Thanks in anticipation!

[J Temple-West]

Good morning Staff.

Firstly, welcome to the club!

Well, that is an interesting piece! As you say, we are rather limited by the size of the picture but we can say that the colour configuration (brown/black with white eagle) is correct for a Commander of a Battalion-size signal unit.

The normal size of a car pennant is around 24 x 40cm. One possible reason for the size of this pennant is that it could have been used to identify a mobile HQ or command vehicle during manoeuvres.

As to originality? as with all cloth, there are certain tests that can be done. Black light, burn test on a loose thread, etc, but only you, having it in hand, have that advantage.

Going on the picture supplied, I would say that it has a good chance.

[Staff Sgt Jock MacSplock]

Thanks for that. Here are some more photos where I've tried to give some close-ups

[Staff Sgt Jock MacSplock]

And one of the metal fixings

[J Temple-West]

It still looks good to me, Staff. The fixing clamps certainly look period and are of the type used for a larger pole than found on an officer's vehicle. This reinforces my thinking that this particular pennant would have been used to identify a command station/HQ.