Russian 12,2 cm field gun

Russian field gun constructed in 1931. The gun had the Russian designation ”122 mm Pushka obr.1931 (122-31)”. The gun weights 7.100 kg in position and had a range of 20.870 m.

During the first years of the war against Russia a large amount of the effective and robust gun in German hands together with large amounts of ammunition

Our gun which bears the serial number ”613” was produced 1939/40: the date ”1939” is stamped on the gun itself, whereas the date ”1940” can be seen on the axle of the carriage. The gun came to Denmark in January 1944 when nine coastal batteries armed with guns of this type were emplaced.

After the German capitulation the gun was made unserviceable by cutting the breech, chamber, gun pipe and the recoil system with a blowtorch.

Until 1958 the gun was placed as a trophy in the Artillerilejren (artillery barracks) in Esbjerg. When the camp was closed the gun was parked on the former German air field at Esbjerg where it was rediscovered in the mid 1980’s. It was then moved to Varde Kaserne (Varde Barracks), where it was once again rediscovered in the late summer of 2003. In 2004 the gun was donated to the museum.