My first M16 for evaluation

[BrianC]

Good evening,

I recently found my very first M16 Stahlhelm in a resale/gift shop and wanted to present it for evaluation. I knew it was an M16, but missing the liner pads and chinstrap. The steel M17 style liner band is there with remnants of 3 leather pads under it, and the chinstrap bales are present, made of brass. All three liner rivets are present and tight. I wasn't really interested in buying it right away, as shells generally don't interest me that much. That changed once I saw the insignia on it, as I figured it was something more interesting. The lady running the store said she doesn't really deal in militaria, and offered up what I thought was a fair price for it, around $150 USD. In researching and inspecting after I brought it home, it is marked Si66 inside, and the insignia is hand painted, consistent with the First Guards Infantry Division insignia. It was rather filthy, so I wiped it down with a damp cloth to get all the dust off it. There's a length of bailing wire hooked to both chinstrap bales as a makeshift hanger. There aren't any dents and it seems to be in decent condition- I don't really plan to do anything else to it other than getting the rest of the dust off. I don't think adding reproduction pieces would do it any favors. Does the insignia and paint look original and correct? Also, does the insignia add any value to what's essentially still a shell? These helmets are way out of my wheelhouse- I knew what it was right away, but that was about it. These things are difficult to photograph well, I did the best I could with the light conditions inside. The condiiton of the paint is represented best in the 3rd photograph. Thanks!

[MAP]

I'm happy to stand corrected but I do like the hand painted shield although it is not graphically the same as others. Given that they were hand painted maybe there were variations. That said, I hope others will opine as to whether they like it or not as I have not studied these.

If real, this is quite collectible and worth way more than $150. The fact that it is only a shell does hurt the value but still worth much more than the purchase price.

This hand painted shield is the Hohenzollern Crest for the Garde Divisions.

Guard M'17 Helmet Marking

M16 Garde Helmet - BF 62 - With Personalization

P.S. Any photos of the back of the helmet? Maybe a number that has been rubbed out if not visible?

[BrianC]

Thank you! I'm (obviously) far from an expert on these, but looking it over in the store and at home, the painted shield looks very old, at least to my untrained eye. I asked the owner of the shop if she knew any history of it, she said it came to her with a bunch of other non-military pieces from an old storage unit in northern Michigan a family cleaned out after their elderly relative whose unit it was passed away. There is no number painted on the back, like the one in the link you provided. I hate to be that guy, and realize it's a very subjective answer, but if real, what would you think a ballpark value be? As I mentioned, WW1 German items are not anything I track or have any advanced knowledge of. I appreciate the feedback and information you've provided.

[AndyM35]

First off, I think your assessment was good Brian.

The paint is all original as is the chinstrap hardware. The majority of hand painted Garde Division shields that you see on helmets for sale are post-1918 applied. The giveaway often being that the patina does not match that of the rest of the helmet. I agree with MAP, this one looks good and the paint and style and rendering all look as you would expect. The design is one I’ve seen on a variety of examples.

We do not provide appraisals on the forum and with these being quite rare (I have not seen an original one for sale in 5 years), it’s hard point you to somewhere that might give you an idea. I would suggest perhaps trawling the internet to see if one has been sold at auction previously. The lack of liner detracts a little but adding one would detract even more. I agree with you - best to leave it as is as it is a great piece of WW1 history.

Andy

[BrianC]

Here's a picture of the back- I don't see any evidence of a number having been there. Thank you both so much for the information. I'm glad I trusted my gut instinct telling me this helmet might be something special. I'm going to clean the rest of the dust off and it will take its place as a highlight in my small helmet collection.