Irish Free State, M1927 Steel Helmet, Vickers Ltd Mfg

Original era manufacture. Certainly an historical oddity, and a bit of a finger poked in the eye of the British government, is the German inspired, M1927 Irish Free State military helmet.This example is serial numbered 10,012, out of a run of 10,021, making this example one of the last helmets produced. In addition to the serial number, stampings for the manufacturer, Vickers Ltd, (VL) and a '27 date can be seen.The inside of the leather helmet band  is maker marked T.Smith & Sons, Dublin, 1927, and size marked S, for small. Traces of white overspray can be seen, indicating that it was repainted white during WWII for Civil Defense use, then repainted in it's present green livery by a collector postwar.Original brown leather chinstrap with German style connectors, the liner pads are present and none of the finger holes are pulled through. According to one online source, most of these helmets were later crushed and destroyed postwar.