Estonia. An Estonian Collaborator POW Trench Art Box and Identity Tag

A rare and unique trench art box made by an Estonian collaborator POW in Soviet captivity. Constructed of multiple pieces of light wood, the box features a retractable lid on a hinge, decorated on the exterior with an etched Estonian coat of arms, highlighted in national blue, black, and white colours. The lid opens to reveal a highly-detailed, multi-coloured design on the reverse in the form of a barbed wire POW camp fence overlaid by a Leibstandarte AH insignia. Beneath the image is an inscription of “ROHTLA JÄRVE 1945-46-49”. The box completes with a small hollow compartment and measures 102 mm (w) x 100 mm (l) x 22 mm (h). Minor material fatigue is evident, but this unusual piece of postwar collaborator memorabilia is in an overall near extremely fine condition. It is accompanied by a POW identity tag, constructed of zink and perforated with a suspension loop. It bears a stamped number of “1150”. Measuring 40 mm in diameter, the tag is in a very fine condition.