SS “Dirlewanger” id tag no. 773 from Germany

Very rare half of a zinc Erkennungsmarke from a member of the SS-Sonderkommando Dirlewanger, stamped with the number -773- and the unit name “Dirlewanger”. The unit was formed in 1940 under Oskar Dirlewanger and grew from a special battalion into a regiment and a brigade and, in February 1945, finally into the 36. Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS "Dirlewanger".

It fought in anti-partisan operations in Belarus and in the suppression of the Warsaw Uprising in 1944. The remnants of the "Dirlewanger" division were destroyed in the fighting south-east of Berlin in April 1945, in the famous Halbe pocket.

We believe it was found there. Only half of the tag has survived, and it is broken into two pieces. The surface is corroded, with white and rust-colored spots, but the number is clearly readable, and most of the unit name is still legible.

It has the classic font for this unit. A rare tag to find, from a notorious unit.

Item code: 3YVT9