M44 Heer Breast Eagle

Product Description: This M44 Heer Breast Eagle is an outstanding, maker marked example of this desirable late war eagle. This pattern of triangular breast eagle was introduced late in 1944 to simplify production, and was factory applied to M43 and M44 tunics. It’s textbook Bevo style machine woven construction, with a gray eagle on a field gray triangular field. The backing is a thin gray rayon. The name of the manufacturer, “Bevo Wuppertal,” is woven into the backing. The reverse shows typical details of the machine weaving. This M44 Heer Breast Eagle is an unissued, unworn piece, cut from a factory roll. The edges of the backing have some minor nips or snags that do not affect the insignia.  The condition rates as excellent.

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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