Morgan,
The police unit mark on your 1918 DWM is of particular interest to me. I am developing a database of Weimar police marks (over 500 so far) and have run across several similar to yours. Based on the other marks I have examined, I believe your Luger was marked by the Berlin municipal police in three stages:
â?¢ W.I.R 69 â?? I believe this mark was the first applied, before issuance of the 1922 Prussian Interior Ministry marking orders, and represents the West Group, Section I (Charlottenburg), Precinct Main Force (Revierhauptmannschaft), weapon #69 of the Berlin municipal police. I donâ??t know if they were known as Schutzpolizei at that time. As noted in Weimar Lugers, p. 196, the Revierhauptmannschaft units (which I suspect were comparable to the SWAT teams in U.S. police departments today) were created by Prussian Interior Ministry orders in January 1921. This, along with the 1918 date of manufacture on the pistol, is consistent with a pre-1922 orders marking date.
â?¢ S.B.W.I.R 69 â?? I believe the â??S.B.â?, indicating Schutzpolizei Berlin, was added later to bring the mark into conformance with the 1922 orders. The key to this interpretation is the location and appearance of the â??S.B.â? In several cases such as yours, it is very near the bottom or heel of the grip strap. In others, it is in a different font, and/or is out of line with the rest of the mark. In other words, it has the appearance of an afterthought.
â?¢ S.B.5219. â?? This mark is in conformance with the marking orders of 1932. At some point between 1922 and 1932, the Berlin Schutzpolizei apparently consolidated the weapons inventory and renumbered the weapons. In several cases, such as yours, the â??S.B.â? from the second marking was retained, the rest canceled and the new weapon number added. In other cases, the second mark was completely canceled or ground off and a new â??S.B.xxxx.â? added.
For my database, I would appreciate knowing the serial number of your Luger and whether it has/had sear or magazine safeties.
|