Germany, Heer. An EM/NCO’s Belt Buckle, by Richard Sieper & Söhne

(Heer Gürtelschnalle für Mannschaften und Unteroffiziere). Constructed of magnetic steel with olive-drab paint, the obverse bearing a central raised Heer-style German national eagle clutching a mobile swastika, situated within a ribbed ring bearing an inscription of “GOTT MIT UNS” (“GOD WITH US”) with laurel branches, the reverse with a loop and attachment claws emanating from a functional roller, the latter retaining a brown leather strap bearing a maker’s mark of “R. SIEPER & SÖHNE, LÜDENSCHEID”, circumscribing a manufacture date of “1940”, with an additional manufacturer’s logo stamped onto the reverse of the buckle, demonstrating significant loss of paint to the base metal with some additional surface oxidation, an early-war example in very fine condition.