The EWB was issued with equipment from pistols through light artillery, and grew quickly to 200,000 members. Following its disbandment, many of the member's arms were never turned in. I believe that the following 1918 Amberg GEW 98 could have been one of the Mauser infantry rifles which were retained and hidden by a civilian, as it shows no sign of refinish, upgrades or post-war arsenal refurbishment. Aside from a duffel cut, missing front band spring, missing lock screw, and replacement rear action screw, it appears to be (nearly) complete, and in excellent original condition.
(And, yes. The blued receiver is correct for mid-1918.)
It's quite easy to recognize, even from a distance, with the large EWB letters branded into the beech buttstock. Brown E scratched his name on the left side, and likely brought the rifle home with him after WWII.
There are lots of little marks and features, so lots of pics! Enjoy and thanks for looking.
