Item Description
Original Item: One-of-a-kind. This is a fantastic genuine Great War hand painted camouflage helmet complete with its original liner. Helmet features original period colored camouflage paint with various colors in sweeping shapes. It also has a hand painted insignia of the IX ( 9th Corps ) on the front of the helmet along. On the left side it reads:
Alsace Lorraine
BUCK, PvT. A.E.F.
On the right side it reads 151 FA
The paint shows minor wear, but has a great look with vibrant colors. The texture of the original finish can be seen and felt through the camouflage. The interior of the helmet has all original paint. It also has a mostly complete liner with felt top pad and a broken chin strap. The liner does show age, and the leather is somewhat degraded, but the oil cloth is present, as is the underlying netting.
The Minnesota 151st Field Artillery, part of the Rainbow Division, served in France from October 18, 1917, to November 11, 1918. They saw combat in Lorraine, Champagne, Chateau-Thierry, and Meuse-Argonne. On November 11, 1918 (Armistice Day), the 151st was near Sedan. To Minnesotans, the 151st Field Artillery embodied the fight for the "freedom of democracy." The state welcomed them back as heroes in the spring of 1919 with a ceremony on the steps of the state capitol building in St. Paul. Thousands of Minnesotans cheered the men of the 151st, the end of war, and the establishment of peace.
History of the M1917 Helmet
The M1917 was the US Army's first modern combat helmet, used from 1917 and during the 1920s, before being replaced by the M1917A1. The M1917A1 helmet was an updated version of the M1917 and initially used refurbished WW1 shells.
The M1917 is a near identical version of the British Mk.I steel helmet, and it is important to note that when the US joined the Great War in 1917 they were initially issued with a supply of around 400,000 British made Mk.Is, before production began state side. The M1917 differed slightly in its lining detail, and exhibited US manufacture markings.
M1917 helmet liners typically show a paper label at the crown and the dome rivet head. The liner is set up as on the British versions, with an oilcloth band and net configuration, attached to a leather strap, riveted to the shell. The chinstrap is leather with steel buckle.
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