Grosses Militär-Waisenhaus (Potsdam)

[Wilhelm Saris]

Going ahead about information about the website about the stolen collection from my friend Philippe Gillain
and the related announcement (which is somewhat delayed, but will come soon) I would like to show the
members of the forum my favorite from his collection, which is vanished also.
PS: I was lucky, as I was allowed to have a preview at the planned website. I think the collecting world
will be pleased when the website finally is "airborne"!

If you do see the both Gillain-items, shown below, please do contact me with a PM. Thanks in advance!

With various visits to my friend in Belgium I always anxiously awaited to see again the quite rare set of
headgear, a visored cap and field cap for the “Grosses Militär-Waisenhaus”, Potsdam.
For me this set was the ultimate, so to speak “finger-licking- good”. They once were the property of a former
orphanage-member: Günther Dürringer.
Two photographs do show the actual visored cap and the inner with the manufacturers logo from Ahlers in Postdam.
Further two photographs in wear. Also shown the field-cap with its two colors, as well as two photographs, which do
show the wearing of the typical field-cap. The both caps do show the bond with the army: the green cap band and
the lower part for the cap in green. Note the tip of this lower part of the flap should have a grommet.









This in contrary to a set, which in my opinion is a pure 99,9% reproduction, which was sometimes ago offered at
Hermann Historica, in spite of the fact of their defence it being original. This is a fact I will not ever discuss with
them, especially when one ever has seen an original set.
All used cloth materials for manufacturing the visored cap, as well as field-cap, were from incorrect materials (but
there is more which gives reason to my opinion). A nice try, but in my opinion just bogus when one has seen an
original set of headgear for the “Waisenhaus”!

[stonemint]

THat is a tragedy, they were probably the only pair left in existence.
Everyone, keep an eye out for these rarities.

[stonemint]

Wim--didn't you do an article on the Waisenhaus for Bender's magazine?

[Wilhelm Saris]

Yes. For those interested here the cover.
Bender may still have some issues available.



The entire magazine, 32 pages, was dedicated
to the orphanage, 1724-1945 with history, its
flag and the dresses/uniforms from 1724-1816;
1816-1918;1918-1933; 1933-1934; 1934-1939;
1939-1945 for boys as well as girls and further
its ranking-insignia.
With this you have all the information you ever
wanted to know! Interesting is the fact of the
wearing of the NPEA dagger, even into the war
when they were not an NPEA anymore!

[Wilhelm Saris]

For those really interested in this subject about one of the most
obscure institutions, and being in a good mood today, I do show
some average pages from the article, which in my opinion was
one of my best published articles ever with 70 footnotes.
The cooperation of former members of the institution was great!







Enjoy!!

[HPL2008]

Excellent; thanks for sharing this material!