HISTORY. After WW2 ended, Czechoslovakia was occupied by the Soviets. The Soviets collected all the German uniforms, weapons, etc. and sent them to the state controlled Film Industry. And now we find out that the hoard of uniforms included some concentration camp uniforms & caps. In the communist controlled Czechoslovakia, the film industry primary responsibility was propaganda for the Soviets to indoctrinate the Czech into communist ideology. So, the Nazi uniforms were used in movies demonstrating communist superiority over fascism. After the Berlin Wall came down in 1989 and the Soviets lost power in Eastern Europe, the Czechs slowly discovered the value in the German uniforms that were piled in film storage rooms. As items got sold, more items were discovered. About 8 years ago a box of concentration camp uniforms and hat was discovered. This is one of those hats.

Constructed with course cotton material. Alternating blue and off white strips. In the interior of the cap is stamped “CS. FILM” (a film studio in Prague). Cap size is hand written “57” and stamped “714”. Judging from the MINT condition, I assume it was never issued at the local concentration camp at Theresienstadt. If one item could represent WW2, this could be it.

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