Original Items: Only One Group Available. This is an excellent pair of items once worn and used by a Marine with either the 3rd Marine Division or the 1st Marine Division. These two divisions were the occupants of The Rockpile also known as Elliot Combat Base, which is engraved onto the lighter.

The Rockpile, known in Vietnamese as Núi Một, is a solitary karst rock outcropping north of Route 9 and south of the former Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Its relatively inaccessible location, reached only by helicopter, made it an important United States Army and US Marine Corps observation post and artillery base from 1966 to 1969.

If you watch a movie and see troops lighting up a cigarette, you’ll probably notice that Zippo in their hand. Search-and-destroy missions in the Vietnam War were often referred to as “Zippo missions.” There’s simply no denying the fact that American troops have long had an intimate relationship with Zippos.

The American Zippo Manufacturing Company was founded in the 1930s, but when World War II started, the company ceased all production for consumer markets altogether and instead manufactured lighters exclusively for troops being sent to war. Millions of them were carried by troops and, no matter what, they knew they could rely on their trusty, metal lighter to spark their cigarette during a long day of warfighting.

Zippos took on a different function during the Vietnam War. Aside from reliably lighting cigarettes, they were used to light flamethrower tanks when the built-in, electrical igniter didn’t work. They were also used as mirrors to shave, to heat up popcorn, and the list goes on.

In fact, Zippos became synonymous with Vietnam War operations as troops would raze villages with lighters on seek-and-destroy missions. But Zippos weren’t just for burning things down — they actually became a kind of cultural timepiece, and this one is a perfect example of that.

Many lighters featured tragic, humorous, aggressive, patriotic, or rebellious slogans while some just had a simple insignia or etching to tell a story like this one. It is etched on the front with USMC / The Rockpile / Vietnam with a worn Eagle, Globe and Anchor collar/cap insignia affixed to the front. Dating zippos could be tricky, especially if the bottoms of them are quite worn which most of the time they are. Luckily enough this one still has the bottom markings visible! The markings on the bottom are:

ZIPPO MFG. CO. BRADFORD, P.A.
MADE IN ZIPPO U.S.A.
PAT. 2517191 ® PAT.PEND.

The Zippos marked with Patent 2517191 WITH Patent Pending indicated manufacture some time between 1950 to 1957. This was more than likely a Zippo that was carried into Vietnam by this Marine and not purchased while on leave. The zippo itself is quite worn with little finish remaining and oxidation present. The striker wheel still turns as intended and does appear to be functional. All you need is a flint and some fluid if you would wish to use it.

Paired with the Zippo is a small web belt buckle bearing the insignia of the ROK Marine Corps. The Republic of Korea Marine Corps, also known as the ROK Marine Corps, ROK Marines or South Korean Marine Corps, is the naval infantry of South Korea. The ROKMC is a branch of the Republic of Korea Navy responsible for amphibious operations, and also functions as a rapid reaction force and a strategic reserve.

The ROKMC was founded as a suppression operations force against communist partisans in 1949, prior to the Korean War. The ROKMC also fought in combat during the Vietnam War.

The ROK Marine Corps, with 29,000 personnel, is organized into two divisions and two separate brigades under the Headquarters ROK Marine Corps. The ROK Marine Corps has about 300 tracked vehicles including assault amphibious vehicles, main battle tanks, and self-propelled artillery.

The belt buckle, from what we were told by the previous owner who received the grouping from the veteran, was worn in conjunction with his uniform. South Korean units were as tough and professional as any in the United States Army or Marines, and came to be justly feared by the communists. More than 300,000 Korean troops passed through Vietnam at some point, and more than 5,000 were killed so it was not uncommon for Marines to trade uniform items with their allies.

A lovely pair of items ready for further research and display.