SS General Oswald Pohl's open-neck tunic

Stunning condition | Amazing Provenance

High quality field-grey gabardine material with open-neck, box top pockets, and slash lower pockets. The tunic with the SS-Obergruppenfuhrer rank epaulettes with silver & gold entwined braids on off white / grey wool backings. Each epaulette with two fine silvered pips. The collar  with a matched pair of fine quality SS-Obergruppenfuhrer post-1942 style collar patches. The tunic actually tailored with four small holes each side, to accept removable collar patches  with corner posts and screw on fastenings. The collar complete with silver-aluminium edge piping. The left sleeve complete with a fine quality SS officer / general rank silver bullion wire eagle/swastika. A silver brocade ‘SS-Hauptamtschef’ cuff title to the French cuff. The tunic  with loops for awards to the left pocket, and also loops for a relatively long ribbon bar. The inside of the tunic  finished with a fine field-grey silk lining, and with typical tailor-stripes to the sleeves. The tunic complete with a name panel to the inside pocket, ‘SS-OBERGRUPPENFUHRER OSWALD POHL’.

Condition report: The tunic surviving in excellent overall condition, with just very light service wear evident The tunic free from moth or damage. Some light age patination to the epaulettes. The collar patches crisp, and of particularly high quality embroidery. The collar patches free from any adverse oxidation. Both the sleeve eagle and brocade cuff title also free from adverse oxidation.

Provenance: This open-neck tunic, and a Liteuka belonging to Oswald Pohl were acquired by the historian, Andrew Mollo, from the Munich-based theatrical costumiers company, Breyer. The open-neck tunic was acquired by him in the late 1950s. The Litewka was acquired from Breyer later in 1974. Peter Breyer told Mollo that after the war, Pohl’s widow had sold Oswald Pohl’s uniforms to Breyer.

Mollo kept both tunics until 1980. In 1980, Mollo sold the Pohl Litewka to the well-known UK-based collector, Michael Pollock. Later that same year, he sold the Pohl open-neck tunic to him. In 1988, Pollock sold the Pohl open-neck tunic to ULRIC of ENGLAND. Since 1988, the Pohl open-neck tunic has been shown in numerous books, including SS-Regalia, Waffen-SS Unforms, Inside the Allgemeine-SS. Also included in the sale, a copy of a coloured photograph of the tunic  dated 1985, sent from Pollock to ULRIC of ENGLAND. A document dated 26.9.1988 detailing the history of the tunic from 1945, signed by Pollock. Additionally a copy of a letter dated 3^rd October 1980 from Mollo to Pollock describing the purchase of the Pohl open-neck tunic, and Liteuka, from Breyer.