Original Item: One-Of-A-Kind. This is a beautiful memento of WWII. The Marine that owned this “sea bag” was of some artistic talent when it came to painting the image on the bag. The bag itself was originally khaki in color but was painted over with a “rubberized” type of green paint and then painted a lovely Hawaiian woman with the text “Vicky / Over 21”. We have not been able to locate any information on this, we do not know if this was the name of an aircraft or possibly an armored vehicle/tank. The inside lip of the bag itself is stamped in two different places with the name M. C. MACLEOD JR. Again, we have not been able to locate any service information on this Soldier/Marine, making for a wonderful research opportunity.
The condition of the bag is very good, with the expected cracking from the type of paint used. The colors are still vibrant and easily discernible, making for a wonderful wall hanger.
Comes more than ready for further research and display.
A duffel bag, duffle bag, or kit bag is a large bag made of either natural or synthetic fabric (typically canvas), historically with a top closure using a drawstring. Generally a duffel bag is used by non-commissioned personnel in the military, and for travel, sports and recreation by civilians. When used by a sailor or marines a duffel is known as a seabag. A duffel's open structure and lack of rigidity makes it adaptable to carrying sports gear and similar bulky objects.
A duffel bag is often confused with a hoop-handled hard-bottomed zippered bag, generically also known as a gym bag.
The duffle bag, though, was mostly used during World War II, the term, duffel bag first mentioned by E.E. Cummings, a poet who also served an ambulance driver in Europe. He wrote letters detailing his experiences in the war and military and actually uses the term, duffel bag. The original duffle bags were rather crude with brass eyelets; the canvas bag was long and cylindrical, and used rope as a draw string to tie closed.
By WWII, the "doughboy" duffle bag had served as a critical source of transport and movement for weaponry, equipment and arms. This bag, the perfect solution for carrying around military kits, holding supplies and medical aid, made them vital for the battlefields of the Second World War.
By the end of the war, these Duffle travel bags were commonplace in civilian life in America, Australia and Europe. At the time, the canvas duffel bags that were so regularly used and had become a common part of fashion as much as utility. After the war, they became commonly held because the military surplus meant they could be purchased for pennies; soon people would begin obtain this versatile, stylish Duffle bag for civilian needs.
