Whilst frogskin camo is commonly associated with the Marine Corps in the pacific, it's less well know that it was also tested by the US Army in Europe. There is an apocryphal story that it was withdrawn quickly due to the similarity to German camo and ensuing friendly fire incidents, but this seem unfounded. Once worn out, as would happen quickly in combat, these were simply replaced with olive drab. These are similar in appearance to the classic HBT US Army shirt, but there are a couple of key differences including plastic buttons, reinforced elbows, short sleeves and cover pocket buttons. Finally, whilst these are double sided frogskin, these were only designed to be worn with the green side facing out.
Condition:
This is in amazing condition. There is a little fading to the colour, particularly over the right pocket, but otherwise very clean. All buttons are present and correct, the label is present but heavily washed out and there are still makes stamps in the pockets. There are a couple of tiny pin-prick pulls on the back, but these do not affect the garment at all. It looks like the sleeves have been period shortened.
Size:
- Tagged a size 36 but fits a modern medium/large, though with 3/4 sleeves
- Pit to pit 22.5"
- Shoulder to shoulder 19.5"
- Shoulder to cuff 20"
- Collar to hem 26.5"