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LOT 330
World War II British Lend-Lease U.S. Springfield M1
Garand Semi-Automatic Rifle - Serial no. 478867, 30-06 Springfield cal., 24 inch round bbl., parkerized finish,
walnut stock. Manufactured in February 1942, two months after the United States’ forced entry into World War II, then subsequently transferred to Britain as a part of the Lend-Lease Act, which saw the United States shipping
large amounts of supplies and arms to support the beleaguered Allied European nations. Features a winged blade front with retained screw cap and “flush nut” rear sight assembly, narrow-base gas cylinder with cross-slot plug, unmodified “D35382 3 SA” marked operating rod, short fork follower rod, “8” marked follower, and “D28287-2SA/ RE2” bolt. The barrel is marked “S-A-1-1-42” and with British proofs on the right of the chamber under the operating rod, with bright chamber. The trigger housing is marked “D28290-5-SA,” with a “C46008-2 SA” hammer, “C46015-6SA” safety, and “C-46026-3-SA” milled trigger guard. Fitted with a smooth pistol grip stock bearing a boxed “S.A./G.H.S.” (Col. Gilbert H. Stewart) inspection cartouche and small crossed cannons ordnance wheel stamped on the left of the wrist, a circled serif “P” proof on the underside, along with arched profile lower band and single-grove milled rear handguard clip. Includes an unmarked M1907 style leather sporting sling.
CONDITION: Excellent, retaining 97% original parkerized finish with minor edge wear, handling marks, dried grease, and faint spotting. Stock is very fine as sanded and re-oiled. Mechanically excellent.
Estimate: 2,750 - 4,250
LOT 331
World War II U.S. Colt Model 1911A1 Semi-Automatic Pistol
with British Proofs - Serial no. 928652, 45 ACP cal., 5 inch round
bbl., parkerized finish, plastic grips. Manufactured in 1943, during the height of
World War II. The left side of the slide is marked with the two-line/two-block address separated by the Rampant Colt, “G.H.D.” inspected frame with “F/VP” proof, matching “P” proofs on the frame and slide, and standard U.S. property and army nomenclature on the right of the frame. British lend-lease style proofs are visible on the frame, slide and barrel. Fitted with blade and notch sights, checkered slide catch, thumb safety, and wide hammer, long grip safety, and arched checkered mainspring housing with lanyard loop. Fitted with an unmarked parkerized magazine, full blue barrel with “P” on the left of the lug “COLT 45 AUTO” on the lower left, and “G” on the bottom, and one correct
“hollow back” grip and one replacement reinforced grip.
CONDITION: Excellent, retains 97% plus of the original parkerized
finish with numerous scattered minor handling/takedown marks
and some light edge wear. The grips are very fine with some
scattered light handling marks/blemishes in the otherwise crisp
checkering. Mechanically excellent.
Estimate: 1,800 - 2,750
LOT 332
World War II U.S. 48-Star Flag, Attributed to the 100th Infantry Division in the Battle of Heilbronn - According to information supplied by the consignor, the flag in this lot was recovered from the vicinity of the city of Heilbronn by a resident
of Langenbrettach at an unspecified date, before being sold to a Belgian- based collector of war memorabilia. Located on the east bank of the Neckar river, the Heilbronn area was the site of the Battle of Heilbronn from 4-12 April 1945, as the U.S. 100th Infantry Division fought through a mixed bag of remaining German units assembled around the still-battleworthy 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division to establish
a bridgehead across the Neckar
during the drive into Southwestern
Germany. The battle was notably harsh,
with multiple American attempts to
physically bridge the river foiled by
German artillery, and combat in the
heavily bombed city being of a room-
to-room nature. The flag itself measures
55 inches by 71 inches, with “1943” stenciled on
the hoist, with nickel grommets, the traditional
13 stripes for the main body and a rectangular
pattern of 48 white stars on the blue field. The
flag shows heavy wear and tear, with several
inches lost off the fly, splitting of the stripes, and
tears near the hoist, suggestive of a flag that saw extremely harsh field use and may have been abandoned as the front advanced instead of receiving a proper/official retirement.
CONDITION: Heavily worn/battle damaged, as noted above. Many stains are also present. A well-traveled flag with attribution to one of the toughest battles of the twilight of World War II in Europe. Provenance: The Saloga Collection.
Estimate: 2,500 - 5,000
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