My military collection

[castelnuovo]

Hey all,

Just thought to share a bunch of pics from stuff I collected over the years in my scouring/hiking around ex Yugoslavia

To start with, this is a bullet that left a slight scar on the back of my neck, sometimes in 1991

With the initial shock over, here are some older stuff

Cannonball that are probably few hundred years old. While cool to have, they are not all that rare

These are, I think, German anti aircraft bullets

Possibly  Russian helmets

German helmet, but not quite the classic WW2. Maybe an earlier model

Italian bullet cartridge I found in the sea, along with hundreds of bullets

Pistol found in an old rock/stone wall that divides rural properties

Bullets of different types. Some from sea, some found while digging

The cylindrical tube is possibly a detonator, but not sure

Italian bayonet and knife

Photo taken by a German soldier during an attack. It was in the city of Herceg Novi, Montenegro

German AA identification  book

German first aid kit

Italian first aid kit

These are the bars that you stick or screw into the ground and they hold the barbed wire

Old WW2 or pre Yugoslav navy sword

Serbian helmet, 1991 or so

Money

Thanks for watching and have a nice day

[stikpusher]

Nice collection of militaria there! That Italian cartridge is actually called a stripper clip that holds several rounds to be rapidly loaded into the rifle's magazine thru the opened bolt.

[keavdog]

Neat collection. I particularly like the helmets.

[buddho]

What a collection of military artifacts, and a variety, too. Thank goodness the first bullet pic did not do more damage!

[406 Silverado]

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!!! Now THAT'S a collection. I've got a 7.62 round just about like that which missed me by a foot. I was driving a bus down "Sniper Alley" in the Green Zone in Iraq and it went through the windshield and all the way down the isle, went through the back seat and bounced off the rear wall of the bus and landed on the floor.

[castelnuovo]

Jul 23, 2023 20:53:27 GMT -5 stikpusher said:

Nice collection of militaria there! That Italian cartridge is actually called a stripper clip that holds several rounds to be rapidly loaded into the rifle's magazine thru the opened bolt.

Thanks stick, strip cartridge is the correct term. This one held six bullets.

[castelnuovo]

Jul 23, 2023 21:27:44 GMT -5 buddho said:

What a collection of military artifacts, and a variety, too. Thank goodness the first bullet pic did not do more damage!

It scared the living @#$% daylight out of me.

[castelnuovo]

Jul 23, 2023 21:46:16 GMT -5 406 Silverado said:

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!!! Now THAT'S a collection. I've got a 7.62 round just about like that which missed me by a foot. I was driving a bus down "Sniper Alley" in the Green Zone in Iraq and it went through the windshield and all the way down the isle, went through the back seat and bounced off the rear wall of the bus and landed on the floor.

Close call indeed. I bet there are quite a few stories.

[moramartht]

The rusty revolver remains look interesting, I think it may have been a pinfire.

I have a pair of well-worn German field glasses I inherited from my Dad.  I also remember a compass which went to a chap who had a small boat, it came from the wreck of a glider from the Arnhem landings.  Dad had had more souvenirs but brought them back when he was granted home leave after hostilities in Europe ended.  When he finally got home he found they'd been stolen by a from the local coast defence battery who'd been billeted on his parents and been demobbed earlier.  He also found the same w****r had been riding his motorbike but without taking care of it and the thing was knackered.

I also had a bit of amphora handle which had weathered out from a Roman military context, but there was no sign of burning so it wasn't from the destruction layer therefore doesn't really count as militaria.  Some years later a chap walking his dog a few yards from where I found the pottery came across part of a copper alloy discharge certificate...

Cheers,

M

[tcoat]

This appears to be an original pattern 1916-18 WW1 Stahlhelm. The shell was much taller than the later WW2 versions as they were originally designed to "protect" the wearer from shrapnel from overhead shell bursts while in the trenches. This purpose is also why the British "Tommy" helmet was such a seemingly useless design by WW2.

Your example is cool because even though it is badly rotted out you can still see what appears to be the remnants of the camo paint that was hand applied by the individuals for a 1918 command mandate. Since this was up to the individual units and often even the solider themselves  the pattern could be whatever they wanted making each piece unique. Obviously don't know where you are at or how you got it but it is a huge score for many collectors even in that condition. 



I am sure you are aware but I am going to mention the subject anyway as a PSA.
BE VERY VERY CAREFUL WHEN DIGGING UP OR HANDLEING UNEXPENDED ORDINANCE!
Even small arms rounds that have been under water since the war can still present a serious risk as they become more and more unstable. Anything much larger should be left alone and reported to authorities. 
 

[stikpusher]

Jul 24, 2023 0:32:55 GMT -5 castelnuovo said:

Jul 23, 2023 20:53:27 GMT -5 stikpusher said:

Nice collection of militaria there! That Italian cartridge is actually called a stripper clip that holds several rounds to be rapidly loaded into the rifle's magazine thru the opened bolt.

Thanks stick, strip cartridge is the correct term. This one held six bullets.

In US Army parlance, its a stripper clip. Each individual round is also known as a cartridge. Different armies, and languages come into play here I'm sure.

[deafpanzer]

Way too cool! I really liked the photos of P-38s attacking German targets…

[castelnuovo]

Yup, that is a cool shot. I have visited the fort from where the pic was taken. The P-38s were attacking the port of Zelenika, few kilometers East where the German ships were moored. They hit a tugboat and mortally wounded a German officer. His last words were "Mom, I am coming". An elderly friend told me this when I visited. 

[Tojo72]

Awesome collection.