I love the "odd-ball", unique shovels, in particular, and this one is exactly that. This shovel is a Model 1898 German "Schanzzeug", or entrenching tool, also known as the "Kleines Spaten für Infanterie", or Small Infantry Shovel. I said that this was a Model 1898 shovel, but that is not quite all that it is............ As we work our way through the details, you'll see just how unique this particular shovel actually is.
I purchased this shovel from a seller who was clearing out items that were found in her father's barn, after he passed away. This shovel was found alongside an Imperial Russian Army spade that had been reissued to the Finland Army. The Finnish shovel had the punched hole in the blade, along with "SA" and "P" stamps on the blade, as well as a healthy coat of Finland Green paint. It's brother, my Model 1898, was not as obviously marked, as Finnish issued, but it did hold a few unique clues that pointed to it's previous service with the Finland Army.
This shovel has the blade of a German, Model 1898, with an Imperial Russian style handle, and the faint blade stampings of the Finish Army. Which I guess, sort of makes this a "German-Finnish-Russian" Model 1898 spade!
The earlier German spades were the Model 1874. These M1874 spades did not have folded over "ears" and had a retaining ring around the metal shank. In 1898, the Germans altered the design by folding over, and riveting, the blade "ears, and eliminating the shank retaining ring. Instead of the ring, the blade-shank, top metal was wrapped around and welded on the back side. This formed a a sort of "hybrid ring". This new design was designated the Model 1898. Many German shovels of the WW1 era, did not have any maker's marks.
This style of shovel construction remained in German service up until WW2, when the Germans again changed the construction a bit. The "wrap-around hybrid ring" was eliminated, as well as the folded over ears that were riveted. Many of the older M1898 shovels remained in service, but next generation shovels were constructed to the new style, beginning some time in the late 1930's. At this time the Germans also eliminated the rivets on the blade, and instead started spot welding them.
Earlier I stated that this shovel was a "German-Finnish-Russian" shovel. Well, here is the story this particular shovel tells, and how I came to figure that out.
The blade of the shovel is uniquely, a Model 1898 pattern, German shovel.
The handle is a bit shorter than shovels of this era, by a little over an inch or more. The handle is also an Imperial Russian style handle. The German handles had a "ball end" and the Russian handles had a taper, without ball end. Finland repaired old captured shovels, and surplus shovels, using the "Russian" style handles, and as far as I know, they were the only country to do so.
The blade is stamped with a partial "SA" stamp that matches the Finland Army shovel stamps used on re-issued shovels. It also has the distinctive Finland, "P" stamp, indicating "pioneer". The blade is not punched with a hole though, like most Finland re-issues.
So, with those clues, we can deduce this shovel's story. Here is how I see it.
This shovel started out its service in the German Army, before, and definitely during, WW1. After the war, in the 1920's, Finland acquired a large amount of old WW1, German surplus equipment, mostly helmets, ammo pouches and shovels. This shovel would have been one of those 1920's acquisitions.
After the German surplus shipments arrived in Finland, they went to a refurbishment and repair facility. This shovel must have had a damaged handle, and it was replaced with a new handle, or a handle salvaged off of an Imperial Russian shovel. Finland was using Imperial Russian shovels acquired from their break with Russia in 1918 at the time, so a Russian style handle would have made sense for a repair like this. After the shovel was refurbished, it was stamped with the "SA" acceptance stamp, and the "P", for pioneer unit use. It would have then been issued out to the "new" Finland Army (Finland was expanding, "modernizing" and reequipping, her army with "new" equipment during this time).
In 1939, Russia invaded Finland, and the Winter War was on. This shovel would have seen service in that war. Shortly after the Winter War, the Continuation War with Russia began, and this shovel would have seen continued service during that time as well. After the war, the Finland Army continued to use, and issue, the old equipment that was acquired during the 1920's, from the old German WW1 surplus, and from Russian captures from the 1918 break, The Winter War, and Continuation War. So, this shovel would have seen service after the wars, during the Cold War. Some time in the 1970's to 1990's, most of the old small equipment was sold as surplus. A lot of it found it's way to the USA, and was sold in military surplus stores. It was during it's layover in a US surplus store, that it was acquired by the seller's father, and then came to rest in his barn. The shovel then found it's way to me after the previous owner's death. And that is the "shovel story" as I see it, based on the "reading of the clues"! Of course we will never know the exact details of its story, but I am 99% certain that the story I am telling fits. We call that "Historical Interpretation".
Just to recap, here is a list of the "Finland" clues:
- WW1, German surplus shovels were acquired by Finland in the 1920's.
- The handle has been replaced with a Russian style handle, typical of Finland repairs.
- The blade is stamped with the Finland "SA" and "P" stamps.
- The shovel was found in the US, paired with a positively identified Finland reissue shovel.
You can check out some of my other Finland reissue shovels here:
https://sharky-fourbees.blogspot.com/2020/01/finland-entrenching-tool-shovel-re.html
https://sharky-fourbees.blogspot.com/2015/10/imperial-russian-finish-re-issue-trench.html
https://sharky-fourbees.blogspot.com/2019/12/finland-entrenching-tool-spade-shovel.html
Now let's take a closer look at this very unique shovel. I hope you enjoyed the "story"!
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