Group portrait.

**alpenfestung** · 10-06-2010, 10:31 AM

Can anybody shed any light on this group?
A mix of service personnel and civilians obviously.
Can anyone say what part of the military the men in uniform are from?
And any ideas what kind of work this group may of been involved in?
The maps in the back ground are interesting I wonder what the drawing pins may signify?
Thanks in advance for any help and information.

Kris...

**Espenlaub Militaria** · 10-06-2010 10:31 AM

We also buy and trade your items and full collections!

**Adrian Stevenson** · 10-06-2010, 11:04 AM

Hi Kris, they are members of the RAD.

Cheers, Ade.

**alpenfestung** · 10-06-2010, 11:50 AM

Thanks Ade.

**HPL2008** · 10-06-2010, 02:25 PM

A few random observations: The collar patches are of the first pattern as originally used by the RAD's forerunner, the FAD/NSAD, and carried over into the RAD until replaced by a new second pattern.

The two men on the left wear the sleeve badge for administrative personnel (Verwaltung).

According to Angolia's "Labor Organizations of the Third Reich", the second pattern collar patches were introduced in 1936 and the specialists' sleeve badges in early 1937. Provided these dates are correct and given the fact that the sleeve badges are already worn while the new collar patches have not yet been adopted one could date the photograph ca. 1937.

As for the kind of work the group was engaged in, this is of course completely up to speculation, but from the items visible on the sides and in the background, the white coats worn by the two civilians and the presence of administrative personnel, my gut feeling would be that they were engaged in some kind of design/graphic/cartographic work for official RAD publications.