German SS Lighter. Any thoughts?

**ArchStenton** · 10-07-2012, 06:12 PM

Hello everyone, my first post here.
I have, among other things, this piece which i never happened to see anywhere else. The story behind it is I don't know much about it. It was bought in Athens (Greece, just to avoid ambiguities with american towns) on the flea market. It was dirtier, I cleaned it. Made of copper i think, engraving around spark mechanism (which works by the way) says "patent austria IMCO 2500".
Could well be from the time when the city of Athens was occpied by German forces. I asked once a dealer/collector he said it's a curious piece, surely not a standard part of equipment, probably a gift from on afficer to another... but that's just suppositions of course.
So... any thoughts? (Also an estimate about it's possible value would be nice if anyone has a clue (not intending to sell it, just to know what do I have in hand)).
Thanks!

**Espenlaub Militaria** · 10-07-2012 06:12 PM

We also buy and trade your items and full collections!

**lebus12** · 10-07-2012, 06:25 PM

Hello, Wecome on the forum,
Surely one piece for tourist, it's a long time Athen was occupied.

**Walkwolf** · 10-07-2012, 06:31 PM

Nice old lighter with added repro/fake crap.........

**ArchStenton** · 10-07-2012, 06:33 PM

by lebus12

Hello, Wecome on the forum,
Surely one piece for tourist, it's a long time Athen was occupied.

Thanks, well, never said I was a tourist there. And of course I didn't buy it at the souvenir shop among postcards... I'm not questioning it's legit-ness, I'm confident it is (tho I make mistakes too, but before claiming the fake please state why)... I'm asking rather if anyone has seen one, known of or had one, or in general if anyone has any piece of knoledge I might not be aware of to share with me.

**Eddie** · 10-07-2012, 06:35 PM

Wouldn't it say "Österreich" rather than "Austria"?

**ArchStenton** · 10-07-2012, 06:37 PM

by Eddie

Wouldn't it say "Österreich" rather than "Austria"?

Had the same question when i first read it...

**big ned** · 10-07-2012, 06:44 PM

by Eddie

Wouldn't it say "Österreich" rather than "Austria"?

Good point Eddie. I'll tell you why, the 2500 model Imco (Julius Meister & Co.) lighter was made for the American market from 1937 onwards. It's a shame it's been buggered with as these are fairly rare, I used to own a plain chromed finish one years ago, and that's how I know!

Schmokin', Ned.

**Adrian Stevenson** · 10-07-2012, 06:47 PM

Hi, and welcome to the forum!

A search soon brought this up:

IMCO 2500: Made by Julius Meister & Co. (IMCO) in Vienna ca. 1937. An unusual
Imco model, a semi-automatic design with a simple but ingenious mechanism. Probably made for the USA-market. Patented by Julius Petravic in Austria (1923) and Hans Silberknopf in USA in 1936.

My strong feeling is a period lighter but with added repro insignia. This is a favourite trick with fakers. The SS closely guared their patented insignia and something of this nature would not have been allowed for sale.

Cheers, Ade.

**Jerry B** · 10-07-2012, 06:49 PM

It appears that someone has cut the ends of the wings off the eagle to make it fit the size of the lighter.

**Walkwolf** · 10-07-2012, 06:57 PM

In the last 10 years or so, there has been a lot of this sort of thing appearing.
Lighters, pocketwatch cases, cigarette cases, clocks, ashtrays, etc. All rather
common 'everyday use' non-military items made of brass which have had
poorly cast or stamped Third Reich emblems attached/soldered
onto them. Sorry.........