SS Embroidered Sleeve Eagle

Product Description: This is a pristine example of a desirable enlisted issue SS embroidered sleeve eagle. It’s made of SS black wool, with a rather coarse weave, and features the distinctive eagle design used by the SS, machine embroidered in silver-gray thread. The execution of the embroidery is detailed and perfect. The reverse of this SS embroidered sleeve eagle is textbook, and shows the embroidered emblem in reverse, with a cream-colored bobbin thread. This is an unissued eagle that was never stitched to a tunic. The edges of the wool have a few stray strands of yarn, but no fraying. There are no moth munches or any other kind of damage, and only extremely slight toning from age. This eagle would be perfect for restoring an unissued uniform. It also displays very nicely as a collectible in its own right. It is in near mint condition, and would be difficult to upgrade.

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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