US World War 1 Gas Mask-Did you know that over 70,000 American soldiers were exposed to gas during the first world war. Gas was a constant threat and the boys needed protection throughout the war. This 1917 model is US made and has a design that is based on the smaller British model (SBR) that was originally in use early in the war. There was a time early in the war when the US did not have enough gas masks, so they utilized the British model before we were able to produce our own. This gas mask has a yellow tank that is well marked, and a face mask with eye pieces. The rubber is extremely brittle, and in a fragile condition. We recommend not unfolding it, leave it as it is, otherwise it will crack. The rubber has dried out, making the rubber very, very delicate. There is a hose attached to the yellow tank. The tank retains approx. 70% of the original yellow paint. The eye pieces have discolored. The interesting piece of this is the brown canvas carrying bag. It fits the can and mask perfectly and has a brown canvas shoulder strap. The reverse of this bag has a number of places written in blue pen, where we assume the veteran was deployed. He started in Liverpool, and logs 24 places, including Paris on the reverse of the bag. The bag is also well marked with a stamped number under the flap. The front of the flap has a stamped number 3 on the front. This is a very cool collectible. We talk about if some of these pieces could talk, what stories they could tell us. This is why we collect, to imagine what some of these guys experienced. World war one was known for its gas attacks and it says that 90,000 to 1.3 million fatalities can be attributed to gas alone. This was a very important piece of field gear for everyone fighting during this war. This is sound condition, but please be aware how fragile the gas mask itself is.