RARE 1951 Korean War Canada Uniform Jacket, Pants, Helmet, and Gas Mask Bag

Included in this lot is an original Canadian battle dress jacket (blouse), stamped 1951. The jacket is a size 4, so it is small. Also included is a matching pair of pants, which are a size 3. Both of them are in good (but used) condition.

The back of the jacket has a small tear. All insignia has been removed on the sleeves except for two WWII-era "CANADA" titles. Near the waistband of the pants, there are a couple of buttons that got rusted and have bled into the material. It looks like one button is missing as well. Also included in this lot is a stunning example of a 1942 Mark (MK) II helmet, stamped "GSW" and D. ", the latter standing for "Department of Pensions & Health. This would imply that this helmet was originally made for civil defence.

The liner and chin strap are original. As shown in the photos, the liner is stamped with "MKII 1942", meaning that this helmet and its liner were made during WWII. The netting on top appears to be old, but as shown in the images it looks like it was replaced at some point. It is tied to the helmet liner and I could easily see a different shade of green between the string in the liner and the one used for the netting. There is photographic evidence of Canadian soldiers using MKII helmets during the early stages of the Korean War, so it is definitely possible that this helmet was repurposed for combat use.

This helmet came with the uniform, so as much as I would like to think it was used by the same soldier as the one who wore the uniform, I have no other solid proof. Lastly, this lot includes a WWII Canadian gas mask bag. Although hard to see, it appears to be stamped with "VII Woods 1943" on the inside of the flap (with a Canadian C-broad arrow stamp over it). The bag is a bit dirty and stained but appears to have retained all of its original pieces (except for the gas mask, of course). There are plenty of photographs out there showing Canadian soldiers wearing this kind of uniform in combat during the Korean War. As previously mentioned, everything included in this lot originally came together, which leads me to believe they were all worn/used by the same soldier all the way back in 1951. There is also evidence of these soldiers using WWII gear to fight this war. Besides all of this hypothetical talk, I do not have solid proof that everything you see here was worn into combat. But it is very likely. What is 100% certain is that the jacket and pants are part of the same set.

If, in actuality, the helmet and gas mask bag were not originally used by the same soldier, then you now own a very nice MKII helmet and a WWII gas mask bag!