Lot 647

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Description:

SS UNIFORM OF HANS BAUR, HITLER''S PERSONAL PILOT
HANS BAUR (1897-1993) World War I flying ace, SS officer and personal pilot to German dictator Adolf Hitler. Presented here is a fine relic belonging to one of Hitler''s closest companions, Baur''s custom-tailored uniform tunic, trousers and accessories. The uniform tunic is of fine "field-gray" wool, with a lining of gray rayon. Four pebbled metal buttons secure the front, and each breast bears a patch pocket with buttoned flap closure, with slash pockets bearing similar flap closures at the waist. Thread loops for medals and a ribbon bar are present above, below, and applied to the left-hand breast pocket. The right-hand sleeve bears an SS-style national eagle patch, finely embroidered in silver wire thread. The right-hand sleeve bears an Honor Chevron for the Old Guard. The collar is trimmed with braided silver cord, and the lapels bear pre-1942 style collar tabs indicating the rank of Gruppenfuhrer, hand-embroidered in silver wire thread on black velvet. The shoulders feature sewn-on shoulder boards of braided silver and darkened gold cord, on a grey wool base, each bearing a single rank "pip" also indicative of the rank of Gruppenfuhrer. The interior of the left-hand breast is fitted with a single slash pocket, with the label of retailers Kuhn & Nupnau of Munich. The interior of the pocket bear''s an owner''s label, with the name of the retailer and inscribed: "Oberfhr. [Oberfuhrer] H[ans] Baur", dated July, 1943. A dagger hanger is suspended from the interior of the left-hand sleeve, with a slit below opening into the waist pocket. The collar tabs, as mentioned above, were outdated by the time Baur was promoted to Gruppenfuhrer, so the time of their application to this tunic cannot reliably be determined and they should not be considered original to the garment. The shoulder straps and other insignia are all very professionally applied and show absolutely no indication of not being contemporary to the tailoring of the tunic. Present with the uniform is Baur''s memoir, "Mit Machtigen zwischen Himmel un Ehre" ("With the Mighty Between Heaven and Earth"), [Oldendorf: Verlag K.W. Schutz KG], 1971, 328pp. 4to., bearing an inscription and signature on the front flyleaf by Tiefenthaler in Baur''s name, and Bauer''s ownership stamp on the rear flyleaf. A photograph of Baur in conversation with U-boat ace Gunther Prien appears between pages 208 and 209, depicting Baur in a field grey uniform, showing his Iron Cross, ribbon bar, award badges and party membership badge in precisely the same positions as the corresponding medal loops of the tunic presented here. In this photo, Baur''s tunic also bears the collar tabs of an SS Oberfuhrer, matching the rank inscribed on the ownership label of the tunic offered by us. The tunic is in overall fine condition, barring some slight soiling to the interior lining of the cuffs. Accompanying the tunic are a pair of jodhpur-style of gray worsted wool, laced at the ankles, lined with striped and gray rayon and closed at front with a hook and four brown composite buttons. Each hip shows a vertical slash pocket, with a flap-covered watch pocket at the right-hand hip, and with a flap-covered seat pocket on the right-hand side. A buckled adjustment strap appears above the seat, and a pair of elastic green and taupe suspenders are affixed via buttons inside the waistband. Apart from some slight soiling within, and additional soiling and wear to the suspenders, the trousers are in fine condition. Both tunic and trousers are sized to fit a man of larger stature, such as Baur. Also present are a pair of grey doeskin fabric gloves with snap closures at the inside of the wrists. Rounding out the collection is a 48" ceremonial belt backed with forest green velvet, bearing a repeating pattern of SS "sig" runes and oak leaves in silver wire thread. The belt is further fitted with a 2" dia. circular SS belt buckle, depicting a swoop-winged political eagle over a stationary swastika, bordered with the motto: "Mein Ehre heisst Treue" ("Loyalty is my Honor"). The reverse of the buckle is RZM-marked with the production code "36/39", indicating manufacture by Overhoff & Cie. of Ludenscheid. The belt shows minor wear to the velvet backing, with some cracking to the leather adjustment tab, and slight soiling to the tongue, else very good. All of these items show unsurprisingly only very light wear, as Baur apparently preferred to wear his black SS uniform or a flight suit. This uniform was acquired from Baur among many other relics by former SS officer and military photographer Jakob Tiefenthaler, who contributed numerous photographs and provided assistance in writing Baur''s 1986 memoir, "Hitler at My Side". Provenance is provided by an A.N.S. in German by Tiefenthaler, 1p. 4to., in part: "... I found this original weather report in the beige uniform jacket from Flugkapitan and Generalleutnant a.D. Hans Baur when he gifted it to me on Aug 17, 1985, along with a white and this field grey uniform jacket, which he wore during his farewell from Adolf Hitler, at the time of his arrest and during his 10 1/2 year imprisonment in Russia..." The weather report mentioned here is included.Also present are two Baur family photo albums, together containing approx. 250 circa 1960''s-80''s images, including many views of an older Baur with his descendants and friends. The lot is rounded out by twelve additional T.L.S.s from Tiefenthaler to Baur, all dated 1984, discussing their book, its promotion, signing photographs, etc. A large file containing additional correspondence to Baur, most docketed in his hand, is also present. A most important and historical uniform from one of the most respected of Hitler''s closest friends and confidantes. HANS BAUR (19 June 1897 - 17 February 1993) was appointed head of the Hitler''s personal squadron, initially based at Oberwiesenfeld, Munich. As the Luftwaffe was not yet officially established, Hitler wanted Baur to be able to command sufficient power and respect to assure his security, therefore, Baur was commissioned a "Standartenführer" (SS No. 171,865) by Heinrich Himmler in October, 1933. By the end of the war, Baur commanded a total of 40 different aircraft, including Ju 52, Condors, Ju 290 and the Fieseler Fi 156 Storch. On 31 January 1944, Baur was promoted to SS-Brigadeführer and major general of the police; and on 24 February 1945, he became an SS-Gruppenführer and Generalleutnant of the Police. During the last days of the war, Baur was with Hitler in the Führerbunker. Baur had devised a plan to allow Hitler to escape from the Battle of Berlin, which Hitler refused to join. Wounded as he tried to escape Berlin, Baur was held by the Soviets and French until 1957.

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April 17, 2018 10:00 AM EDT
Chesapeake City, MD, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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Bid Increments
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$0 $99 $10
$100 $499 $20
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 + $10,000