Jump to content

A 349th Infantry Regiment "Naked Lady" Letter Opener


Charlie Flick
 Share

Recommended Posts

Charlie Flick

Gents:

 

While not really an "edged weapon", I don't think anyone will object if I post this one here.  I have owned this  letter opener for many years. About 11 years ago I posted it to one of the Insignia subforums here on the site to find out what that crest was all about.  I learned that it was the insignia of the 349th Infantry Regiment, a component of the famous 88th Division, the "Blue Devils".  The 349th had fought a bloody and difficult war in Italy during WW2.  Thus, my guess is that this souvenir letter opener was purchased by a 349th veteran while in Italy.  It is probably not something which he wanted to send home to Mom.  Rather, I think the soldier figured that this was a souvenir that he wanted to keep for himself, or maybe as a gift to a younger brother.

 

Composed of cast aluminum these naked lady letter openers were a popular item for GIs with time and money on their hands.  Our friend and fellow member Frank Trzaska posted pics of a nearly identical opener on his site just this past month.  That post can be found here:

http://www.usmilitaryknives.com/current_knotes.htm  Reading Frank's Knife Knotes reminded me of my own example and prompted me to post it here.

 

Regards,

Charlie

 

Naked lady letter opener.jpg

 

Naked lady letter opener 349th Infantry crest closeup.jpg

Naked lady letter opener back side.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Frank Trzaska

Excellent example Charlie, I have a few but have never seen one with a DI on it, bravo!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...