East German M56 Helmet

The M56 helmet was adopted by the East German army in 1957. However it was first seen as prototype replacement helmet for the Wehrmacht during WW2. It was tested as early as 1944 and offered better. protection and was easier to produce, it also lent itself for better concealment. However the "B/II" ( as it was known ) was rejected by Hitler on the grounds that the existing German helmets M35, M40, M42 where a symbol of the German struggle. This example is a very early example with a M31 wartime style liner and three external rivets to secure the liner. There was a M56/66 which had a new style liner and then a M56/76 the final version which had not external rivets. This example is dated 1960.

Code: 68887