Deutsches Rote Kreuz M43 Private Purchase?

[buellmeister]

Gentlemen,

I just purchased this beautiful DRK M43 cap today from a local antique shop. This is the first of it's kind in my collection and looking at the construction and style it is slightly different from the advertised examples seen on the Collector's Guild website. Could this be a foreign made piece/private purchase? Thank you so much for any information you can provide me.

Regards,

Joel

[M.E.E.]

In 15+ years of collecting DRK I have not seen buttons like this on TR DRK items. From my understanding they used a standard pebbled button, I also haven't see the piping on these before. I could be wrong, I stay away from this style of cap due to the large number of post war examples (far more post war than period). Maybe someone will prove me wrong and I will be able to add pictures of these to my collection but it isn't something I have encountered before.

[stonemint]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it is not Third Reich, and it may not even be German--maybe postwar Austrian?
HPL was in the DRK, and he may have the answer.

[stonemint]

These are TR:

[Adrian Stevenson]

I think it is Swiss, hence the buttons and black piping.

[HPL2008]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it is not Third Reich, and it may not even be German--maybe postwar Austrian?
HPL was in the DRK, and he may have the answer.

While similiar caps in this general style were worn by the German Red Cross both during and after the war, the buttons and piping don't match DRK caps from the Third Reich, the FRG or the GDR.

I agree that it's a Red Cross cap from some other European country with an added TR badge.

[JPhilip]

Hello,
I'm with Ade on this one, buttons and black piping (like on pants) look swiss to me...
Thanks

[ErWeSa]

Somebody seems to like painting - the original is here (and yes, it is Swiss, but Swiss army, not Red Cross):

https://shop.strato.de/epages/62098650.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/62098650/Products/"Schweizer+Feldmütze+Filz+gebr.+Mütze+Ord+40 "

[HPL2008]

I Googled around a bit as well and I fully agree now that it is a Swiss Army "Ordonnanz 1940" (uniform model 1940) field service cap for enlisted ranks.

As said above, the buttons are not "Red Cross" buttons as such; this is the cross from the Swiss flag. They have been painted over; apparently to deceive.

[buellmeister]

Gentlemen,

I thank you all for your knowledgeable assessments. Like I stated before, it did seem odd against the two examples I had compared it to. None the less, I did take a little leap of faith with the purchase and and went completely into uncharted waters. My mistake for purchasing an item based on emotion not expertise. Fortunately it did not set me back too much. To tell you the truth I think this cap looks better pieced together than the original German issued ones. Had the Germans gone with the cross embossed buttons, I think it would have been more esthetically pleasing to the eye. lol

Thank you all again for your insight.

Regards,
Joel