We are told this is a Czech made M44 Nazi flare pistol. We admit to having very little knowledge of such items but we can describe it so it makes sense to those with more background in World War II flare guns, weapons and field gear.

The pistol is clearly late-war and consists largely of welded stamped metal sub-assemblies like a Schmeiser Maschinepistole 38 / 40 (MP 38 / 40) or Russian sub-machine gun, with a machined barrel, hammer and breech release. The grips are of wood. The piece is about 9 inches long by about 6-1/2 inches tall and takes a cartridge that measures about 1 inch or 25 mm in diameter. On the left side of the frame is a shield with notched corners and a star in the center next to a partial eagle and swastika. On the right hand side is another partial stamping but we can not make sense of it.

This flare gun is little used and in good condition. It weighs about two pounds.