1941 Tabbed Heer EM Buckle

Product Description: This tabbed Heer EM Buckle is a choice example of the standard issue wartime buckle of the German Army. This one is dated 1941. It’s made of stamped steel. The obverse is beautiful, and still retains about 95 percent of the original factory applied smooth field gray paint. All of the original detail is present, and there are only some small and minor marks to the surface. The reverse of this tabbed Heer EM Buckle also retains nearly all of the original paint. The typical spot welded catch for the belt hook is intact. The roller bar and prongs assembly is functional, and still retains the original leather tab. The tab is made of smooth brown leather. All of the stitching on the tab is intact. The buckle is unmarked, but the tab is maker marked by the firm of B. Haarmann in Lüdenscheid, with the 1941 date. The tab shows light use, matching the steel buckle. This desirable buckle displays very well, and remains in excellent condition.

Historical Description: The belt buckle was an important part of the regalia worn by all uniformed military, civil, political, and paramilitary organizations during the Third Reich. The belt (“Koppel”) was part of the uniform and would always be worn while on duty. The belt buckle (“Koppelschloss”) was generally specific to each organization, with many organizations having separate belt buckles for officers and for enlisted personnel, sometimes with different colors and finishes to further denote specific purposes. The buckles were adorned with various mottos and designs specific to the organizations for which they were intended. Many designs used the German national eagle emblem, in a variety of forms. Belt buckles were worn with uniforms ranging from finely tailored officer parade uniforms, to the issue uniforms of enlisted soldiers in combat. Generally speaking, most German belt buckles of the Third Reich were made with two prongs on the reverse, to allow the buckle to be worn and adjusted on a belt. The buckle had a catch that would mate with a hook on the belt, when worn. The earliest Third Reich buckles were often made of brass, or nickel silver. Later, aluminum became very common, and was used on private purchase as well as enlisted buckles of the German military, with or without a painted or plated finish. After WWII began, most enlisted military buckles were steel. Nazi belt buckles were popular souvenirs for Allied troops who served in Europe. Some types were made by the millions and remain quite common today. Others were made in limited numbers and are very rare.

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