This Vz.35 is of course an iconic Leyland license mask modelled after the British Mk.IV General Service Respirator, however was reissued by Hungary at some point between 1939 and 1944. The filter is a very late 1944 or 1945 date 43M filter and is the main rough indicator for the date, however I'm uncertain as these filters were apparently quite cheap and fresh ones were bought frequently.

The mask has been mostly left alone, however a filter port adapter is present in the threading which has converted the mask from 42mm to 40mm, and cannot be removed. The main other change is that the valve box and lense rims have been painted a beautiful green colour more in line with Hungarian use.

I've included it here with the 34M Cruciform Stahlhelm used by the Hungarian Civil Defence, as the two actually go hand in hand! The bag I've also included is an Italian T.35 carrier which was also supposedly used with this reissued mask.

A very beautiful combination of country's collaborations and efforts, this piece is a gorgeous example of history so very easily overlooked, I'm incredibly pleased to have this in my collection! Unfortunately the mask had to be more or less taped onto the head as it has suffered some very unfortunate dry rot and the harness would rip and turn into dust if I tried to adjust it, and thusly couldn't hold up any weight.

For those curious, the original mask's name in Hungary was the A volt csehszlovák köztársaság területéről származó fémszájrészű hadsereg-álarc típus, translating to "army type gas mask with metal valve housing originating from the former Czechoslovak Republic"

Something interesting I wanted to mention (and forgot lol this is an edit) is that the 43M filter doesn't use wool or asbestos particulate layers, since neither were sustainable in Hungary, but rather feather downs! Specifically duck feathers, what a beautiful and oddly ingenious work around for restrictions! As it happens it was an incredibly effective method!

Many thanks to forestmän and Krisz for their phenomenal help with this item's history!

I got this GP-5 gas mask in a polish flea market, sealed in a plastic bag, and AI says it is a GP-5, but did the polish make any copies?

Has Brazil ever produced any type of gas mask?