The German Flea market

         Here you will find items that I have found during my visits to Flea markets in Germany. ( Dresden, Berlin, Leipzig, Chemnitz, Zwickau, Nuremberg, Munich ect…)

Some things are military and some are not. Some are civilian items which were popular in German homes before and during the war. Some are antique/cultural items unique to Germany and/or Western Europe. Some are big and some are small. Some are expensive and some are cheap. It really is quite a mixture. Even if there is nothing that you want to buy, I hope you will at least find it interesting to browse through

 

..

.

ITEM 69 A great Kriegsmarine Photo album

I bought this from a seller at Chemnitz flea market. He had just gotten it from the Daughter of the sailor. There are 194 photos (mostly captioned) filling every page with none having been removed. Unlike the majority of photo albums the ratio between interesting pictures and boring ones is quite high. This has tons of good stuff, showing life on board ship, maneuvering at sea (among some pretty famous vessels of the time) A couple of different wartime Christmas’s. The sailor (who is not named in the album) was apparently among the naval personnel who; in January 1945, evacuated east Prussia aboard the converted cargo-liner Pretoria along with 5000 refugees in desperate flight from the Red Army. Overall, one of the best Photo albums I’ve ever had. (and I’ve had a lot of them)  $350.00

.

.

ITEM 68 Wehrmacht bowls

These are 9 inch bowls. (Remember that European bowls are much more shallow than what we are used to. They are only barely deeper than plates.) I have 5. All in pretty good shape. They have minor scratching from all that Nazi fork & spoon action but nothing that one could call damage. $75 each

.

.

ITEM 67 Wehrmacht plates

These are 9 inch plates. ( European plates are just a bit deeper than what we are used to.) I have 3. All in pretty good shape with no damage. $75 each

.

.

ITEM 66 Socks

These appear to be 100% non-synthetic material. The white does not react to UV light. The calves are made stretchy by interwoven threads (see the picture). I believe completely that these are original pre-1945 Wehrmacht socks. $45 per pair. I only have three pair left. 

.

.

ITEM 65 The Kaiserpfalz

This is an example of a common type of Cultural folk art; generally made from a slice of a tree branch. It is a hand-painted rendition of Kaiserphalz in Goslar/ Harz mountain region. (The last 2 photos are modern pictures of how the structure appears today. $25.00

.

.

ITEM 64 A camouflage ditty bag

Made in the post war years, this is an example of “Kriegschrott” (Items made in the immediate post-war years from left-over war materials; at the extreme beginning of Germany’s economic recovery). It is made from the same material that late-war camo parkas are made from. A drawstring closed ditty bag which probably cost a dime in 1946. Today it is $20

.

.

Anybody who has noticed such things in the militaria collecting world will no doubt agree that there must be probably 10 million WW2 German photo albums in this world. German soldiers were real shutter-bugs. We see countless portraits, group-shots and scenery photos on all fronts from Poland to the Ardennes. Whenever I visit flea markets or antique shows/shops in Germany, I am always on the lookout for the cameras that these soldiers may have used. What follows is a small selection.

PLEASE NOTE: I am not a camera expert. I haven’t used a mechanical camera in years. The examples offered here seem to me to be complete and functional. They are clean and for the most part; in excellent condition. But they have not been tested and I offer no warrantee on them whatsoever.

.

ITEM 72 A wartime made AGFA Isolette

This is a very popular make/model camera during the war years; something like the ubiquitous Kodak found in every American household, In Germany the AGFA cameras were the work-horse of amateur photographers. The black bakelite top identifies this camera at a glance. Advertisements  for this model are seen all over the place in period magazines and such. $190.00

.

.

 

ITEM 71 A Voigtlander Vito II

The Voigtlander Vito II model actually came out in 1949 so this one is not a wartime camera. But it is complete with all the bells & whistles. $65.00

.

.

 

ITEM 70 A pre-war Voigtlander

This model goes back to the early 30s and was not made after 1940 or so. $80

.

.

 

ITEM 69 An early DDR camera

This is an early example of one of the first 35mm cameras; the Beltica camera made by the East German VEB Belca-werke in Dresden around 1950. The quality is rather astounding. $55

.

.

 

ITEM 68 A wartime AGFA amateur movie camera

Remember those awful films made surreptitiously by some German officer during the executions at Babi-yar? He was using a pocket movie camera much like this one. $150.00

.

.

ITEM 67 Standard soldier’s folding pocket knife

This is completely standard except that it has bakelite grips whereas every other one I have seen has wooden grips. Clean blade with a maker mark/logo. $40

.

.

ITEM 66 Paybook

Remember that scene in “All Quiet on the Western Front” where Paul Baumer encounters the Dying French soldier and looks through his paybook? (Just FYI, the French guy’s name was Gerard DuVal”. Anyway, Paul didn’t actually pocket the paybookand take it with him but it seems that some German soldier did that with this one. I found it at a flea market near Chemnitz in a box of WW1 German soldier’s paperwork and medals. The grouping cost too much for me to buy but I did get this. The paybook belonged to a private soldier by the name of Anthony Marie Albert who was born in 1889. The book is very very well worn with a reinforced cover; obviously carried in a pocket for an extended period of time, probably years. It is well filled out with a short synopsis of the soldier’s service time. I can’t guarantee that it was once a German soldier’s souvenir of a vanquished foe. But is was definitely there. ON HOLD

.

.

ITEM 63 “Kriegschrott”

Another example of “Kriegschrott”. This one is an enameled pitcher made in the immediate post-war years from a 75mm artillery shell casing. The shape of the taper is unmistakable. You can see through the enamel that the bottom has been cut short and welded. I used this for the last year or so to water my Ficus plant. But it died anyway so I don’t need this any more. $50

.

.

ITEM 62 Third Reich era Road maps

Remember your parents telling you about the roadmaps they used to pick up at the Sinclair gas station? Well, this is what the drivers in Germany were getting at their local DP (Deutsche Petrol ) station. You can see that they cost 1,20 Reichsmark per edition. If you want to buy one, please don’t ask me to go through them looking for the village where your great-uncle was born. I’ll just pretend that I tried. These make perfect stocking-stuffers for that car buff on your Christmas list. SOLD

.

ITEM 61 A very good helmet portrait

This is a good clear image. Post-card sized. Judging from the close-up, It’s my opinion that the helmet is an EF66 M35 which was finished to M40 specs with textured paint. The decal is a Huber-Jordan & Koerner.  I sound like a real helmet-nerd. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 60 A German soldier’s souvenir of Normandy.

Not too many Germans had pleasant memories of the invasion-front. But this fellow had time enough on his hands to create this traditional remembrance item. There is significant wear to the metal tip so maybe he used it as a crutch while escaping the Falaise pocket? $120.00

.

.

ITEM 59 A German souvenir of Russia

Known as a “Wolkov-stok”; This is a ubiquitous item procured  by German officers on the Leningrad front. Made from the wood a specific tree that grows in the region of Wolkov-Ladoga. They generally are found to follow a very common pattern as far as how they were made. First the wood is blackened then patterns of squares and triangle are cut, usually with place-names and dates. (The most common seem to be 1942 or 43). In the 1966 movie “Night of the Generals” Peter O’toole’s villianous General Tanz has brought one back to the west with him. This one is 33 inches longa and has all the usual bells and whistles. $200.00

.

.

ITEM 58 A variant “Wolkov-stok”

This souvenir walking stick is square in shape rather than tubular. But it has all the usual charecteristics. $200.00

.

.

ITEM 57 A Wehrmacht photo album

This album had a lot of photos in it at some point. But they were all removed. otherthn that, it is in fine shape. Maybe you need a place to store your own photos? SOLD

.

.

ITEM 56 A WW1 German Holiday mug

A mug from Christmas 1917. It has cracks on the bottom which seem to have been repaired. I filled it with water and it doesn’t leak. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 55 An un-used “Ehren-Chronik”

Book/Albums like this were availableto soldier’s used wished to create a remembrance of their service time. Apparently this guy forgot to complete it once his service time was over. $100.00

.

.

ITEM 54 A Photo album from Mountain troop regiment 99

A photo album that some Mountain trooper had special ordered from the PX but never used it.  The album cover is well marked. All pages intact and never used. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 53 An impressive gift to a unit commander

 

One of the most well executed and impressive items of this type that I have ever seen. It is a Gift from the men of the unit to their Unit Commander. The circumferential wording reads; “[to] Our Captain A. Huber [From] the men of the the 1st Squadron, Festung Artillery Abteilung 7, 1942”. The center of this plate shows a rendition of St. George slaying the Serpent/dragon; A legend which is prevalent throughout central and Eastern Europe. The wood type and finish is also quite typical of the region. The Unknown craftsman has rendered the hand carving in a precise and symmetric fashion. This plate is larger than most; being about 14 inches in diameter and will dominate any wall area upon which it is mounted. $325

.

.

ITEM 52 An air raid siren

There are air raid sirens that were distributed by the Reich Luftschutz ministry and there were those used by the military. This is a military one. Normally carried in vehicles. This one is fully functional but does not have the sound deadening lever. Most importantly, it has the “ears” intact (those bakelite appendages shown in photo #5) A good number of sirens have one or both broken off. This is a marvelous  toy to use on July 4th or just about any Sunday morning… $425.00

.

.

ITEM 52 A saddle bag

Wellmarked and dated with all of it’s attachment straps. I cannot think of any army which put so much work into their saddlery than the Germans of the world wars. $175.00

.

.

ITEM 51 A “Kriegschrott” carry bag

There were a lot of items made in the immediate post-war years that utilized Wartime materials This carry bag is made from splinter-pattern camouflage that has been produced for German army helmet covers. Whomever made this bag even used the white material that served as the “winter” side of the helmet cover. The bag is well used with some small repairs.$75.00

.

.

ITEM 50 A long service medal

A simple but beautiful medal of fire-gilted tombak with it’s original box. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 49 A desk item.

I have come to the opinion that the Germans love desk sets. This is a inter-war fancy desk-top pen holder.  SOLD

.

.

ITEM 48 A Maxim match safe

Match safes were very popular in Germany. So were Maxim guns. Combine the two and you get a really neat Souvenir of the great war.  SOLD

.

.

ITEM 47 Cigarette tin

A very neat Kaiser-zeit cigarette tin SOLD

.

.

ITEM 46 A Wolchov front ash-tray

You know all those carved wooden walking sticks that were made locally on the northern part of the Leningrad front, well it seems that the tradition bled over into more easily transported items such as this ash-tray carved in the same style and from the same type of wood. $70 SOLD

.

.

ITEM 45 Another Wolchov Front item

Did anybody on the Wolchov front take any time to actually fight the enemy? or did they just sit around carving stuff? And why don’t we see items like this which came from other areas of the Russian Front? Didn’t the Russians have trees in any other place? This handy little box is carved in the style of the ubiquitous Walchovstock Walking stick.  Don’t miss out. $75SOLD

.

.

ITEM 44 An Imperial era Hofbrau beer mug

I know what you’re thinking. Hofbrau beer mugs are real snoozers. They’re everywhere. But look closer. The top of the lid reads “Koniglich Hofbrauhause Munchen”. (Royal House brewery, Munich) That means it pre-dates the 1920 take over as a state-owned enterprise. This is actually made more rare by the fact that it is a miniature. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 43 A really big and nice colorized portrait photo

This soldier’s family celebrated his newly won Iron cross by having a very substantial portrait made of him. Very rare to find them like this. $125.00 

.

.

ITEM 42 A real big RAD portrait

This portrait is unframed which means that you will save a lot of postage and won’t have to worry about broken glass. $15

.

.

ITEM 41 A large framed portrait

This portrait is so well detailed that you identify the decal as a C.A. Pocher, meanong that the helmet is most likely an NS. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 40 Lots of Cigars

This is a sealed box of 100 plain regular cigars. The Nazi era tax stamp is intact, which is a real rarity. But some curious dolt couldn’t help but dig into one of the sides to make sure cigars were still there. A tiny dab of Elmer’s glue would fix that if you need to. But honestly, I don’t know if it’s better to sell the cigars individually or the whole box. I’m thinking $2 per cigar but if you want the whole box, contact me and we can do something.

.

.

ITEM 39 Some little Nazi items

You find these kinds of things in German flea  markets but you have to be ready to dig to the bottoms of the boxes to get at them. All three for $40.00

.

.

ITEM 38 A very little German paratrooper

He is very little. About an inch and a half. Molded plastic. Ready for combat. $10

.

.

ITEM 37 A very good framed portrait

This is an early photo of a soldier and his M35 double decal army helmet. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 36 “Home front” German cookie cutters

These have a military theme about them as you can see they offer cutters that will make little airplane and submarine cookies. $25.00

.

.

.

.

ITEM 35 Lineol figure, SS man

I believe that this one was repainted and used to be somebody else. An SS man does not show up in the original Lineol catalog. He cost $40

.

.

ITEM 33 Lineol figure, Adolf Hitler

What collection of Lineol figures would be complete without the bug cheese himself? This one is in fine shape. I forgot to make a photo of the bottom but I promise that it is there. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 32 Lineol figure, Ernest Rohm

Quite probably the most rare of all the Nazi leaders in the lineol line. For obvious reasons, these were discontinued after June  1934. Rohm is going to set you back SOLD

.

.

ITEM 31 Lineol figure, Rudolf Hess

THis one looks a more realistic likeness than most of the Lineol figures. Hess was the longest surviving leader as well. (If you remember, he hung himself in Spandau in the summer of 1987) SOLD

.

.

ITEM 30 Lineol figure, Martin Bormann

The Martin Bormann figure is also a rare one. The mold makers at Lineol seem to have gotten his midriff correct. Martin costs $125.00

.

.

ITEM 28 Third Reich Harmonicas

Third Reich period Hohner harmonicas in various sizes/keys. These are new-old stock harmonicas which came from a flea market vender in Leipzig who had previously bought out a defunct music shop and had a small crate in the cellar of items that had been left behind years ago. I picked out the ones that were in the best shape. Each of these harmonicas are original, unwrapped and have the original shop price-tags on the back. The prices are in Reichsmarks. Take your pic at $75 each

.

.

ITEM 26 A Toy Nazi Motorcyclist

This is an original 1930s elastolin figure of an NSKK rider. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 24 A

A book of music with definite political overtures. The cover reads: “A selection of the nicest and most well-known marches for all occasions”. Found at the flea market in Chemnitz; the seller told how this book belonged to her Grandmother. What a lady she must have been. $45.00

.

.

ITEM 23 NSDAP doo-dads

I found these little doo-dads in the same cigar box as the music book listed above. They go together for $40

.

.

ITEM 22 German Machine-gunner’s sunglasses

These are not exactly the same kind of sunglasses that we might wear at the beach. The lenses are only slightly tinted in green-yellow. It makes for better viewing at distances; a thing that became very handy for German machine-gunners so these were devised to be issued to German soldier’s equipped with the MG34. SOLD

.

.

ITEM 21 Wehrmacht coal

I know what you’re thinking.  But it’s true. We all have seen those WW2 German contracted bunker stoves; either the sheet metal type or the cast iron model 42. These small coal cakes were specially pressed (in two different shapes) to be transported in ration sacks by the supply column. They were issued out to fuel the bunker stoves for units in static positions. Each has the maker mark “Troll” embossed onto the top and impressed into the bottom of each  cake; to facilitate stacking together during transport. A great novelty item that will make the perfect stocking stuffer next Christmas… $20 each

.

.

ITEM 20 A

Here are two Original WWII German Infantry manuals; known and the Reibert manuals,  300+ pages, these books cover rank, uniforms, marksmanship, weapons, land navigation, map reading, drill, and all the basic of being an infantryman in the Wehrmacht. $75.00 each

.

.

ITEM 19 A

Call this a “cultural item”. It’s a wooden bread-plate with the hand carved words ” Give us this day our daily bread”. These have been traditionally used in German kitchens since the time of the kaiser. $25

.

.

ITEM 17 Soldat Wuppy

This is an example of the popular 1941 printed “Soldat Wuppy”. A humorous story about the life of a soldier written by a soldier.  (Actually, the closest thing to humorous that a German can get). This is a typical item that might be found in a barracks or camp setting. This copy is in reasonable condition with moderate wear. $50.00

.

.

ITEM 12 An original KM photo album

If my count is right, there are 215 captioned photos in this album. They illustrate the naval adventures of an un-named sailor who served on various crafts ranging from a mine-sweeper to a refugee-carrying passenger liner. None of his vessels was a big sexy battleship but he certainly saw a lot of different places and things, engaged in different activities throughout occupied channel ports. At the end of the war he apparently served aboard the passenger ship no.586 Pretoria, from Jan 24-30, 1945 in bringing more than 5000 refugees from East Prussia to Stettin just ahead of the advancing Red Army. You can scan through the entire album here. There is quite a variety of shots. $350

.

.

ITEM 9 A large framed portrait

This one is a massive 18 X 24 inches with a period frame.  $225.

.

.

ITEM 8 Original wartime AGFA camera

Everybody knows what shutter-bugs the German soldier’s were during their visits (invasions) of far-flung countries; miles away from anywhere they may have traveled had the war not sent them.  Of course German soldiers were not issued with cameras but more than a few of them carried them. (this is where those 1000s of period photo-albums come from).

From the Karlshorst flea market in eastern Berlin last summer; This is a wartime Agfa Isolette model 35mm camera complete with it’s original carry case and neck strap. It has a bakelite top and an adjustable AGFA anistigmatic lens. Everything seems functional but I haven’t tested it. $175.00ON HOLD

.

ITEM 1 1930s German household telephone

This is a complete and (probably) functional example of the W28 telefon; the standard apparatus supplied by the German telephone company throughout the 1930s. It was superseded only in 1948 by the newly designed and more robust W48. Unlike the US standard telephone supplied by the US Bell system (the Western Electric model 102), the W28 had it’s own integral bell and did not utilize a separate ringer box. This example retains it’s original wall cord and correct white porcelain plug. The handset cord is the original double strand, cloth covered type. The return spring on the dial is a bit weak which is normal for these 80 year-old phones, but it works. When I say that the phone is “Probably” functional, it is because it is impossible to test. The Unit is an archaic analog device and even if it could be converted, the electrical current in the US is completely different. So this phone is for decoration only. $210.00

.

.

ITEM 2 Commemorative Czech Take-over drinking tumbler

This is a minty example of a tumbler made to commemorate the October , 1938 take-over of Czechoslovakia which was an extension of the Anschluss of Austria and the Sudetenland; representing Hitler’s last bloodless territorial gain. Adorned with the popular motto “One Reich, One people, One Fuhrer!” Glasses like this are still best looked for under the tables at flea markets… $175.00″

.

.

ITEM 3 Large Wood carving of a Demjansk shield

This is a large wood carving of the Demjansk shield; entirely of white Oak wood with an integral wooden frame. Dimensions are shown. A hand created item which must have been a source of some pride to some German veteran of the Eastern front.   SOLD

.

.

ITEM 5 Set of 5 portraits for a German paratrooper

The larger of these is a portrait about 9 X 11 inches; the others being about 6X9 inches. They are original photos in period mounted frames. If my rudimentary German can be trusted, I was told by the sell that the man’s name was Kohl and he was wounded or killed on the “Invasion front” about a week after D-day. That would most likely indicate Carentan and would mean that he was in one of the companies of the 6th Fallschirmjager regiment. The story should be considered apocryphal, however the portraits themselves are genuine wartime with period frames. $650.00 

.

.

You can contact me at this email address; wii1944@aol.com

 

My mailing address is

Ken Niewiarowicz

P.O.Box 582

Lapeer Michigan 48446

.

.