Alexander & Sons Restoration
Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens Nine years before Bela Lugosi donned a black cape and uttered his immortal words, “I- am Dracula” in his characteristic Hungarian accent. There was another man who portrayed the role of the undead blood feasting Vampire on the silver screen. The actor’s name was Max Schreck, an early 20th century German stage actor and a …
Perhaps one of more confusion images to come out of the Second World War are photographs of Chinese soldiers wearing German helmets. Some of the confusion may come from knowing that the Germans were allied to the Japanese. If Japan was fighting the Chinese, then why were the Chinese wearing German helmets. In truth the helmet in these photos are not Chinese copies but …
On June 1st, 1945 in Lienz, Austria, some 29,000 Cossack men, women and children being held prisoner by the British military were to be transferred into Soviet custody. Each of these people knew this transfer would likely result in their deaths. These Cossacks endured over 20 years of brutality, starvation and murder under the Soviet régime. These actions led these people …
There maybe no more iconic item from the Second World War than the double decal German helmet. Most people, even those who know little about the history of WWII can easily recognize one of these helmets. From the comical Sargent Schultz of Hogan’s Hero’s fame to more recent films Hollywood has cemented the double …
In the early months of 1916 the surviving members of a small squad of German soldier huddled in the sordid recesses of a French shell hole somewhere in the proximity of Verdun. White hot shrapnel, fragments of rock, splinters of wood and earth careened overhead as French artillery shells burst overhead. The men drew …
After a long flight that took us from Southern California, to Toronto to Vienna and finally to Vilnius we have arrived in the Baltic. I have to admit being in Lithuania is somewhat of an emotional experience for me. My Great Grandfather was an ethnic German, born and raised in a small village called Nowinikin just south of …
If there is one aspect that draws contention about the history of Great War helmets it is probably the use of hand painted camouflage patterns. Discussions often rage on forums and Facebook pages about this topic. The disagreement usually centers around whether or not these camouflage patterns were used in the trenches. Those …
After concluding our visit to Estonia we headed south to the capital of Latvia, Riga. Riga was established in 1201. The city has a long history over the years, it has played host to a number of different groups from Vikings to German merchants. Riga’s one unique claim to fame, is that the Christmas tree tradition was started there by the city’s …
It seems to happen frequently. Whether it be a small antique shop, militaria show or even an online auction. A soup dish style helmet from the Great War, offered for sale is labeled incorrectly. The seller’s description may read, “American WWI helmet” or “British WWI helmet”. Yet more often than not the seller …
It is day two of the Baltic trip. Today we drove south away from the Baltic and into Poland. Our trip across the boarder was uneventful and almost boring. The border check point is no longer manned due to the Schengen Agreement. The first town we came to in Poland was Suwałki. Suwałki once had …
