Normandy style camo gas mask & canister

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A really interesting gas mask & FRN43 marked canister set which is named to "PLEISS" on the underside of the can. The feldpost number painted on the mask is 10100 which was used by the 2 battery of Marine Flak Abteilung 294 (a naval anti-aircraft unit) up until the  second half of 1942 when the number was discontinued. The number was then put back into use in September of 1943 and belonged to the command\headquarters of the then forming 245 Infantry Division based in the Rouen area of France. This division went on to participate in the defense of Normandy and subsequently retreated into Belgium, and eventually the Netherlands  then Germany.  

A lovely camo mess kit which came back with other field gear including a tropical bread bag & rucksack. L&SL 38

(Linnepe & Schiffer, Lüdenscheid) marked as can be seen in the pics.

 Hensoldt Wetzlar Dialyt 10x50 marked binoculars complete with the original case. I just love the look of these. On the underside of the lid on the case "TONY" is written which I assume was the Vet's name that brought these home after the war. I love the paint on these. 

This is a piece which I have had for a very long time and I actually bought it with my brother at a car show of all places. This was at a parts swap and was just sitting out with miscellaneous auto parts on the table; it's amazing what you can find out there and in the weirdest places. 

An oddity for sure is the KM marked desk lamp. The theory is that the MWaA stamp with the code IV/1 was used by the Carl Zeiss test department, and is exact to those used by Zeiss on their binoculars, so the lamp probably had something to do with optical instruments. Might never know exactly what this was for but how many have you seen?  

The first thing that struck me about this beauty was the almost red color. This piece is 1936 dated and has an early (non branch specific) Waffenamt on the reverse as well. 

Not much to say about this one and I will let the photos do the talking. 

This one has that pinkish hue of the early Deutsche Afrika Korps field gear and is a one looker original.

This is one of my most prized possessions and absolutely oozes history. The items presented in this virtual museum section of the website are the reasons why I work so hard each day to find and preserve the lost relics of a dying generation. I work tirelessly to preserve the trophies that our soldiers fought to return to this country; the spoils of war. These items truly meant something to the guy that carried them back across the Atlantic Ocean and held onto them for years after the war. I got this particular piece from the niece of the Veteran(last name Carlino) who returned this souvenir to the US. He was an American soldier that guarded Gerd von Rundstedt's cell while he was being held captive after the war by the Americans in Wiesbaden. The soldier had private access to Rundstedt's belongings (removed from his office) which were seized by the Allies at the end of the war. Several things were taken and among them was this map which is mounted on heavy canvas and can be folded. The American guard swiped this from Rundstedt's belongings and left it to his niece when he passed away (several other personal taken from Rundstedt were presented as well including letters he wrote his wife while on the front during WW1 and only helped to further corroborate the back-story)

So think about it this way; this is the map taken from the Office of the highest ranking German Officer to survive the war. This is the map Rundstedt gazed upon as Europe was thrown into absolute chaos. It measures nearly 4' wide (it's massive) and you can see German conquered territories are shown in light-pink.

For a full biography on the highest ranking German Officer to survive the war, please see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerd_von_Rundstedt