Atlas Antiques

For sale are two WW2 German Fire Police Protection Bandsman Epaulette Wings & Photo. The photo is a recent photo, produced in the 1980s but this came with the Bandsman Epaulette Wings and originaly mounted together to show the viewer who would be wearing them. One would be for a Wehrmacht bandsman and one for the reich fire police protection bandsman, both have moth hole damage so please see photos for more details. 

FLAK ARTILLERY MUSICIAN'S SWALLOW'S NEST. (Schwalbennester für Musiker)

BACKGROUND: Germany has a long history of producing some of the best master musicians in the world including the renown composers Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms and Hitler's personal favorite Richard Wagner. Military bands date back to the middle ages and were originally utilized for acoustic signaling long before eventually evolving into a form of entertainment. The German government and the Wehrmacht, (Armed Forces), recognized the beneficial morale effect of music and along with larger units and Headquarters bands, Luftwaffe, (Air Force), regiments and independent, battalion sized units, excluding medical units, each had band and a fife and drum corps of various sizes. Depending on the size of the band it would be led by an individual holding the ranks of Musikmeister, (Leutnant), to Stabsmusikmeister, (Hauptmann). Band members wore the standard uniform and insignia of their unit with the distinctive "swallows nest", when performing. The swallow's nest insignia was utilized from at least the 1800's if not earlier and was carried over into the Imperial, the Weimar Reichswehr, (National Defence Force, Circa 1919-1933), and the ThirdReichera with minor variations. The Reichswehr era swallow's nests consisted of seven, wide, vertical stripes on a colored background field and all had a fringe applied to bottom edge until regulations of 1923 abolished the fringe for drummers and fifers but maintained the fringe for Drum Majors. Regulations permitted the swallow's nests to be permanently affixed to private purchased uniforms but were removable, being secured by five hooks and eyes, on the service tunics and the flight blouses. The Luftwaffe swallow's nests were slightly different then those utilized by the army and paramilitary organizations and varied depending on the musician's position with bright silver/aluminum tress and a roughly, 2 3/4", (7cm), long fringe for Stabshornisten, (Staff Buglers/Bugle Majors), bright silver/aluminum tress and no fringe for Musiker, (Bandsmen), and matte, blue/grey tress with no fringe for Spielmann und Spielleute, (Fife and Drum Corpsmen).

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Half-moon shaped, Flak Artillery Musiker, swallow's nest consisting of a red wool base with seven, alternating, evenly spaced, machine stitched, vertical waffle patterned, tress strips and an additional, slightly curved, horizontal, waffle patterned, tress strip to the bottom edge. The waffle patterned tress strips also have a vertical raised rib at the center and near each outer edge. The red wool bases show through as a narrow, vertical, stripe between each of the tress strips.

Guaranteed original or money back guaranteed. This will be sent 1st class signed for and dispatched within two to three working day’s.