A rare Heimsoeth und Rinke three rotor Enigma 1 cipher machine, German, circa 1937,

A rare Heimsoeth und Rinke three rotor Enigma 1 cipher machine, German, circa 1937, serial no. A6674, the baseplate of the machine is marked with serial number 6674 and is fitted with three rotors (I, III, V) with matching serial number A6674 and rare re-wirable 'D' reflector (UKW-D) with serial number A11533 standard QWERTZ keyboard of 26 keys, white on black backgrounds, battery switch, ebonite Steckerbrett [plugboard], battery casing, upper lid with original 'Zur Beachtung' instructions inside, in original veneered oak box, with hinged front panel and leather carrying handle, case closed 150mm x 280mm x 340mm Together with a rare Konski & Kruger Uhr plugboard selector, serial no. 1173,with 20 numbered patch cables and wooden rotary switch, as well as two metal brackets on left-hand side to allow attachment to the Enigma machine, in original beige wooden case with canvas carry strap, inside the lid is the original instruction plate decal and other labels. next to the switch is a label lettered 'Bei drohender Feindgefahr Verdrahtungder Rasterscheibe zerstören!', 'When there is an imminent danger from the enemy, destroy the wiring of the grid disk!', case closed 140mm x 150mm x 200mm 140mm x 150mm x 200mm Footnotes: Provenance (based on information from researcher Frode Weierud) Discovered in 2023, this Enigma machine and the Uhr device had been stored for many years in a barn on a farm in eastern Norway. This machine was clearly used by the Luftwaffe in Norway during the Second World War though there were no former Luftwaffe installations based where it was found. The area, however, had several large military storage facilities after the war. This Enigma machine and the Uhr device may have been moved there however how they ended up in a barn for many years is unclear. The farmer whose barn the Enigma machine was found in had served as a member of the local Home Guard troops (Heimevernet) after the war. His barn may have been used as a logistics storage centre for the unit. The farmer died in 1995, and it seems likely that none of his descendants had known about the Enigma machine before its discovery in 2023 Footnote The re-wirable 'D' reflector (Umkerwalze D) was introduced in January 1944 by the Luftwaffe to increase the cipher security of the Enigma. However, the procedure to rewire the reflector was considered cumbersome by Enigma operators and as such, it was ultimately not distributed very widely. If it had, the UKW-D would have posed a more serious threat to Allied codebreakers. The Enigma Uhr ('clock') was introduced in July 1944 by the Luftwaffe as another means of improving the cipher security of the Enigma. Mounted beside the Enigma machine, the Uhr was capable of changing the configuration of the plugboard circuits every hour by turning the wooden rotary knob. Despite managing to keep its development secret from the Allies, the Uhr's code was broken after just a few days by the codebreakers at Bletchley Park. Bonhams is very grateful to both Patrick Hayes and Frode Weierud for providing invaluable information used in this catalogue description. This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: * * VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing