Constituted early in 1942, the 504th PIR served in World War II as part of the 82nd Airborne Division. Initially deploying in North Africa, the 504th would drop into Sicily and Mainland Italy (particularly distinguishing themselves in assisting the Salerno and Anzio beachheads), and the Netherlands for Operation Market Garden, and fighting on foot in Belgium and Germany. The patch is 5 1/4 inches in diameter, white with a blue border, with the upper third with an open white and blue canopy and the lower two-thirds occupied by a red devil with a trident, facing right. An included photocopied page from an unidentified book features a lieutenant with the 504th wearing a nearly identical patch on an A-2 jacket, with the note that he had acquired the patch stateside before the unit deployed for service. Provenance: The Putnam Green/Sycamore Collection