Mauser Karabiner 98k Rifle
Object numberM2002/017
TitleMauser Karabiner 98k Rifle
DescriptionGerman Mauser Carbine, KAR 98K. Manufactured by Steyr-Daimler-Puch munitions factory, Austria. It was manufactured in 1943, using slave labour from Mauthausen concentration camp. Distinguishing marks, inscriptions, serial numbers and trademarks on the rifle’s barrel and receiver ring reveal further coded information about the manufacture and quality of the materials. For example, Bö – signifies material (high quality steel); Nazi eagle and swastika on receiver ring and barrel signifies that it was produced by the German Government between 1933 and 1945; 8925 is the serial number; Mod. 98 is the model designation; a single ‘s’ rune denotes that this object was produced in a forced labour factory; the number ‘43’ denotes the last two digits of the year of manufacture; and the ‘bnz.’ inscription indicates this artefact was manufactured by Steyr-Daimler-Puch.
The Karabiner 98K (short98 Carbine) (Mauser) was standard issue for the German Army and officially adopted on 21 June 1934 as the standard service arm of the rejuvenated German Wehrmacht until the end of World War II.
The donor, Frank Merchant, a gun connoisseur and collector, who purchased the rifle from a gun dealer in the 1990s, was able to test fire the rifle, the results of which are that the rifle is estimated to have been fired around 30,000 times, as the rifling inside the barrel is extensively worn.
The Steyr factory opened in 1899 to produce bicycles and later cars, mopeds and scooters. It shifted to producing armaments for the war effort, and was operational as a forced labour factory from 14 March 1942 until 14 April 1945, ceasing operations as a forced labour factory three weeks before the liberation of Mauthausen. Around 2,000 inmates from Mauthausen were sent to the Steyr-Daimler-Puch armaments factory in March 1942. By 1943 the factory was producing around 22,000 rifles per month – nearly 10% of all German production. The workers at the factory were interned at Steyr-Munichholz, a sub-camp of Mauthausen, under the command of SS Obersturmfuhrer Hees.
It is estimated that over 14 million Mauser 98ks were made during the Nazi regime in Germany/Austria.
Though the exact history of this rifle is not known, it is likely that it was used extensively between 1943 and 1945.
Reference: Dr Kit Messham-Muir
The Karabiner 98K (short98 Carbine) (Mauser) was standard issue for the German Army and officially adopted on 21 June 1934 as the standard service arm of the rejuvenated German Wehrmacht until the end of World War II.
The donor, Frank Merchant, a gun connoisseur and collector, who purchased the rifle from a gun dealer in the 1990s, was able to test fire the rifle, the results of which are that the rifle is estimated to have been fired around 30,000 times, as the rifling inside the barrel is extensively worn.
The Steyr factory opened in 1899 to produce bicycles and later cars, mopeds and scooters. It shifted to producing armaments for the war effort, and was operational as a forced labour factory from 14 March 1942 until 14 April 1945, ceasing operations as a forced labour factory three weeks before the liberation of Mauthausen. Around 2,000 inmates from Mauthausen were sent to the Steyr-Daimler-Puch armaments factory in March 1942. By 1943 the factory was producing around 22,000 rifles per month – nearly 10% of all German production. The workers at the factory were interned at Steyr-Munichholz, a sub-camp of Mauthausen, under the command of SS Obersturmfuhrer Hees.
It is estimated that over 14 million Mauser 98ks were made during the Nazi regime in Germany/Austria.
Though the exact history of this rifle is not known, it is likely that it was used extensively between 1943 and 1945.
Reference: Dr Kit Messham-Muir
Production date 1943
Production periodWorld War II (1939-1945)
Subjectweapons, perpetrators
Object namerifles
Production reasonMaking military weapons for the German Army
Dimensions
- whole (no bayonet) length: 1100.00 mm
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Mr Frank Merchant