Volume 1 of a monumental three-part illustrated history of ERMA, the Erfurter Maschinenfabrik. ERMA is best known for production of German small arms during the Second World War, including the MP 40 submachine gun, the Mauser K98 rifle, and the ERMA EMP.

Volume 1 provides a complete corporate history from 1924 to 2003, and detailed profiles of all rifle and shotgun models produced at ERMA's factories.

It features a wide variety of guns from lever actions and shotguns, to .22-caliber replicas of the American M1 carbine, to K98s and modern sniper rifles.

The author does not shy away from ERMA management's close ties with the NS regime in the 1930s and '40s, or from their use of forced labor during the Second World War.

The corporate history includes photos of many pieces of obscure marketing ephemera, including posters and adverts, pens, desk clocks, cigarette lighters, and much more. 

Collectively, the three-volume work totals nearly 1,400 pages with more than 2,200 photos. This is the definitive guide to ERMA and a crucial reference for any collector of German firearms.