Italian helmet Lippmann ( Lippmann) M-15/16

Description

In 1915, Italy ordered 1 million 800 thousand Hadrian's helmets from France. The first batches began to enter the Italian army at the end of 1915. Later, there were difficulties with supplies from France. Therefore, in 1916, the Italian government decided to develop its helmet based on the helmet of Hadrian. The Italian helmet, unlike the French prototype, was made of two parts, the helmet itself and the crest, which slightly increased the ballistic characteristics of the helmet. In addition, it simplified and reduced the cost of its production technology, thereby allowing to meet the needs of the army in a short time. The total weight of the helmet was about 750 gr., the thickness of the steel is 1 mm. However, the overall protective properties of the helmet remained not high. There were attempts to strengthen the helmet by placing an armored plate in the front part of the helmet, but this experiment was considered unsuccessful. The balaclava mounted on the Italian helmet was completely copied from the French, and consisted of 6-8 leather petals, although in the last years of the war, the leather was often replaced with a waxed cloth, fastened at the top with a cord. The balaclava was attached by means of four tie-down brackets soldered from the inside to each side of the helmet. The moustache was attached to aluminum corrugated strips, on the French model, providing ventilation. The chin strap was also copied from the French helmet, made of leather, painted black. However, since 1921, the chin strap has been painted in a gray-green color. The new helmet was approved by order of the Commander-in-Chief No. 4542 of April 24, 1916 and received the classification M 1915 Lippmann helmet ( Lippmann). This helmet is also known as the M 15/16. Initially, there was no provision for placing any emblems on the helmet. This procedure was introduced by Order No. 12720 of July 15, 1916. In accordance with the order, it was mandatory to place the emblem of the military branch on the front part of the helmet. So in particular, the infantry emblem indicated the number of the regiment. The first four cavalry regiments (Nice, Piedmont Reale, Savoy and Genoa) had an emblem in the form of a Greek cross. However, in most cases, in practice, this led to a surge of amateur soldiers, and each warrior drew on the helmet the emblem that he liked best. Only in 1925 was a clear regulation for the application of military emblems on the front of the helmet introduced. The Bersaglieri wore a plume of rooster feathers on their helmets, and the Alpine riflemen wore a traditional rooster feather. Since 1921, the helmets of the Italian army have been painted in a light gray-green color. This color remained a regular color until 1940. Members of paramilitary fascist
units painted their helmets black. In 1923, a helmet made of aluminum appeared, which was used by army officers during parades. The aluminum helmet could also be used by all kinds of paramilitary formations.
The proposed helmet is made of steel, in black color. On the frontal part of the helmet there is a metal emblem, very clearly worked out. A steel crest is placed at the top of the helmet. The helmet itself is in excellent collector's condition, without losses, restorations and damage. All the details of the helmet are on the native clasps and rivets. The size of the helmet on the outside is 65 cm, on the inside 62/63 cm. The chin strap is missing. Native balaclava with 8 petals. For a helmet of a century ago, this condition is the best that is found in the European markets of military antiques.