Packeted Unissued Railway Cap Eagles

Product Description: This set of packeted unissued Railway Cap Eagles is a rare find. It’s very tough to find original WWII items that have not even been touched since before 1945. This package is made from thin, reddish brown paper. It still bears its original, serial numbered paper label, with RZM and German eagle and swastika emblems, and the text “Hoheitsabzeichen d. R.” (National Emblem of the German Railway). This paper package was lightly torn open when we obtained this from a very old collection in Nebraska, allowing access to some of the 12 eagles inside. These packeted unissued Railway Cap Eagles are perfect, with no wear or age. They are made of aluminum, with gorgeous polished highlights. The brass prongs on each eagle are still straight, having never been bent to affix them to caps. The reverse of each eagle is marked with “RZM M1/45” in raised lettering, indicating manufacture by the firm of Friedrich Linden, in Lüdenscheid. It would likely be impossible to find better Reichsbahn eagles; that they are still wrapped in the original packaging is incredible.

Historical Description: The German Armed Forces (Wehrmacht), as formed in 1935, and as they existed until the end of World War 2, consisted of the Army (Heer), the Air Force (Luftwaffe) and the Navy (Kriegsmarine). The Waffen-SS fell under the command of the Wehrmacht during the war. Each of these branches of service had a unique eagle design that was worn on both the formal dress and parade uniforms, and the field uniforms, of the members of that branch. These eagles were worn on soft headgear, including service and field caps, as well as on the uniform jacket. In the Heer, the Luftwaffe, and the Kriegsmarine, this eagle was worn on the chest of the tunic; collectors have termed these “breast eagles.” The Heer and the Luftwaffe generally used the same eagle style, though variations in color of the eagle or the backing distinguish between the two. The Luftwaffe used their own flying eagle emblem. The Waffen-SS sleeve eagle (and cap eagle) had wings that came to a distinctive tapered point. The cap, breast and sleeve eagles used by the various military branches were manufactured in many variations. There were machine-woven and machine embroidered versions, usually used by officers and NCOs. Hand-embroidered bullion wire eagles were typically for officers. There were metal eagles, for caps, or for uniforms that were intended to have detachable insignia. There were even eagles embroidered on camouflage fabric, intended for use on special field uniforms. There were also eagles in specific colors for use on tropical uniforms. Some of these eagles were mass-produced, and are still common today; others were and are very rare.

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