A.E.F. Camouflage “Combat” Helmets

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 51: Two more 1917 Steel Helmets encased with autumn or fall colors.

 

Left hand photo courtesy of Washington University

Right hand photo courtesy of Bay State Militaria.com

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 52: Two unusual camouflage patterns, possibly intended for the rubble of a destroyed urban environment.

 

Left hand photo courtesy of Advance Guard Militaria.com

Right hand photo courtesy of the Bones collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 53: From left to right an infantryman from the 79^th Division during the November, 1918 Meuse-Argonne campaign, a Medical Department captain and an enlisted man, from the same photograph, and under the command of the aforementioned captain. Note that wildly different camouflage paint schemes have been applied to each of the medical men’s helmets.

 

Center and right photos courtesy of the John Adams-Graf collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 54: Close up of the (four color?) camouflage helmet worn by the captain of the Medical Department.

 

Photo courtesy of the John Adams-Graf collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 55: Close up of the (three color?) camouflage helmet worn by an enlisted man of the Medical Department.

 

Photo courtesy of the John Adams-Graf collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 56: The entire image from which the above Medical Department captain and enlisted man’s helmets were cropped.

 

Photo courtesy of the John Adams-Graf collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 57: More 1917 Steel helmets painted with subdued autumn or fall colors.

 

Left hand photo courtesy of Bay State Militaria.com

Right hand photo courtesy of the Don L. collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 58: Uncropped image of a 79^th Division Doughboy wearing a camouflage painted helmet during the Meuse-Argonne campaign that took place in November of 1918.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 59: Closer view of the painted helmet worn by the 79^th Division infantryman (left) and of a camouflage painted helmet worn by the Doughboy of an unknown AEF organization depicted in photo number sixty-one.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 60: Two 1917 Steel Helmets painted with a summer or spring colored vine camouflage scheme and a winter, autumn or urban themed camouflage pattern.

 

Photos courtesy of Advance Guard Militaria.com

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 61: This trio of camouflage helmets are worn by (from left to right) an American Doughboy observing the medical treatment of a wounded German prisoner, a soldier from an unidentified AEF organization and a member of the 1^st Infantry Division.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 62: Close up of an unusual (four color?) pattern camouflage helmet that looks as if it’s only painted on the helmet’s bowl.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 63: Full view of the rubber-necking soldier wearing a helmet with jagged, saw tooth shaped segments.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 64: Two examples of what I would describe as late winter or early spring color camouflage schemes.

 

Left hand photo courtesy of Advance Guard Militaria.com

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 65: This pair of WW I era camouflage painted helmets both bear winter or early spring color schemes.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 66: The multi-colored camouflage painted helmet has been donned by a 1^st Division soldier throwing a hand grenade in the Ansaurville Sector. The Doughboy directly behind the grenade thrower appears to also be wearing a painted helmet with a different camouflage pattern.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 67: These two drab colored camouflage helmets have been painted with hues that more accurately reflect the dreary mud-covered devastation commonly encountered in a front line trench.

 

Left hand photo courtesy of the Bones collection

Right hand photo courtesy of Advance Guard Militaria.com

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 68: Two more camouflage helmets bearing either a muddy snow or muddy trench camouflage paint scheme.

 

Right hand photo courtesy of Advance Guard Militaria.com

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 69: The helmet on the ground behind two forward observers from the 126^th Infantry Regiment, 32^nd Division appears to have a two or three color disruptive pattern of camouflage paint.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 70: Closer views of the above disruptive pattern camouflage helmet and the camouflage helmet worn by the sniper in photo number seventy-two.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 71: The gray, white, olive drab and rust colored tones painted onto these helmets would blend in well with broken stone, crumbling concrete, shattered terracotta roof tiles or rusted metal and decaying vegetation. Therefore I have christened these color schemes as “urban”.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 72: This AEF sharpshooter is wearing a helmet that looks as if it’s been purposely camouflaged with either a random splattering of mud or carefully applied paint.

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 73: In this repeat of photo number fourteen, I wanted to once again illustrate how closely the camouflage pattern, on the above sniper’s helmet, mimics the pattern that was hand painted onto the British sniper’s robe.

 

Background photo courtesy of the Imperial War Museum

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 74: Whitewashed or white painted helmets would most certainly be worn in the midst of a snow covered European landscape or during the winter months in far off Siberia and Northern Russia.

 

Right hand photo courtesy of the Jguy collection

[world war I nerd]

A Note about Souvenir Camouflage Helmets

Compared to the number of period photos showing camouflage painted helmets in use by the AEF, there are, surprisingly, numerous examples of camouflage painted helmets attributed to the AEF, for sale in the militaria marketplace. The vast majority of these helmets are in all probability, counterfeit war trophies that were painted immediately following the end of the war.

It is a well-known fact that after the signing of the Armistice on November 11, 1918, an entirely new industry sprang up in Germany, France, and to a lesser extent in Great Britain. That new industry was devoted to the creation of “war souvenirs” and “trench art” for the millions of foreign soldiers who would soon be returning to their countries of origin.

 

Local craftsmen also turned out scores of painted British and U.S. made helmets, whose paint schemes copied the patterns painted onto German helmets. This is likely the reason why the individual segments on so many camouflage painted American helmets feature the black outlines, which at some point became the symbol of a true combat helmet.

Photo No. 75: Perhaps the best sellers, as far as the Yanks and Doughboys were concerned were camouflage painted German and American steel helmets. Camouflage helmets in particular were prized because hundreds of thousands of American soldiers had witnessed elite Prussian Guardsmen and crack Storm Troopers wearing similar camouflage helmets during the bitter fighting of 1918. Thus the multi-colored helmets outlined in black became one of the indelible icons of trench warfare.

 

As soon as the supply of authentic camouflage painted German Helmets was exhausted, enterprising local artisans began turning out counterfeit camouflage painted helmets for the homeward bound American soldiers, all of whom were eager to return laden with “genuine” war trophies.