At least one version did
This writer suggests all three had the black/green patterns
https://bigfour.flamesofwar.com/233/
Star Decals version
I edited (contrast only) the same pic as you have, and got this. It appears to have the same blotch on the right (gunner) side of the mantle as the other sources. Difficult, but playing with the light I also sensed the other blotch on the left (loader) side of the mantle.
That’s interesting, so nothing else in the front except for the mantlet? And looking at the area where Pool’s left leg is, that part of the turret seems to have some black too, the color changes from that area to the area where his right leg is dangling looks lighter.
I doubt we could say “all” or “none” about the camo, or indeed any other fitment from the period! And any tanks that survived long enough to get further workshop time would probably get repaints, so might change appearance over the year after D-Day. I’ve seen pics of tanks being sprayed free-hand with black bands (soft-edge) where the band edges look “hard” from a distance because the spray pattern is tiny and would be almost imperceptible in 1:35. And these often have stowage still in place! Whether they all got their markings re-applied before going into battle is a good question, especially in the short time between delivery and Op Cobra. IIRC the M4A1s weren’t wanted by US tank forces and sat in the UK until the discovery of both Bocage and Panthers, at which point they were rushed across the Channel to use their 76mm guns.
(And it’s interesting to see Pool with both legs! Riding side-saddle was how he got his shot off, wasn’t it?..)
@barkingdigger
Yes, Lafayette Pool lost one of his legs. I’m not certain which one but it was mangled so badly that it had to be amputated above the knee, if I recall correctly.
I adjusted something called brilliance. On the front of the hull there is a definite darker area in front of the driver, and a smudge in front of the BOG. Notice also (in the US Army pic) the shovel in front of the BOG. The light/shadow makes it hard to pic out the center dark patch underneath the travel lock and down ont the differential cover. But I sense it is there.
I opine this scheme seems to resemble this decal artwork with a lot of dust. That pic is Liege, shortly before his 3d strike.
The decal art makes me think that the black has faded heavily into a grey or grey-green. And the vehicle probably last got wet coming ashore, or in a rain storm. The turret is mostly green, but the light and f-stop on the camera make it hard for me to pick out the detail. The artwork shows overpaint on the turret cheek.
Pool lost his right leg in the September 1944 event. He served into the fifties, and my Dad knew him they were both stationed on Fort Knox post-war. @barkingdigger : I doubt he was straddling the hatch while moving to contact. I don’t know this, but I spent 27 years riding MBTs and other AFVs into a fight or two, and never rode exposed once we were in-range. And remember, if the enemy is in-range, so are you!!
I think this is ITM III. I’d have to check the RN/USA#, but it looks correct.
I edited the pic a lot, but in every version I tried, I got those dark blotches. I selected this one for the evident contrast between OD and black.
Raise your hands if you already knew that the Sherman is actually a Citroën design 
In the photo you posted, it looks to me like the black patches were sprayed and have soft/feathered edges — just not very wide ones.
I don’t know if I mentioned earlier I lost my designated modeling space and a lot of my tools and things are in storage, some here but a lot at a storage facility. I haven’t painted the BM because it’s been cold and overcast here and right now because all my air brushes and compressor are in storage I’ve been reduced to painting outside with a spray can like when I started in this hobby. So painting options are a bit limited right now.
So while I’m waiting for the sun to come out…I was excited to learn that Pool’s tank was built with a continental hull. I went looking and I found that untouched Tamiya hull in my spares. Then I found two Tamiya turrets that I had replaced with AM resin turrets on some tanks before. These were a bit beat up and weren’t in good shape. So I went for it and decided to try to back date one of the turrets today. I needed a turret to go with that Tamiya hull to make Pool’s tank.
I started with something that looked like this:
I was pleased enough with the turret that I decided to go ahead and operate on the hull.
Good work. By the way it’s Poole.
@SSGToms
sometimes I type it correctly and then other times wrong.
The Tamiya turret was a bear to work on. The plastic is thick. Converting the old Italeri hatch was a lot easier than working with the BM because the hatch was a solid part and not hollow. I wasn’t able to remove the gun so i just cut off MB and started sanding until the bump was gone. The barrel is half a mm shorter than it should be but it’s not noticeable to the naked eye.
I’m going to end up with a platoon of these tanks by the time I build the Asuka kit😀
Just so you know, the commander’s hatch is in the wrong orientation 
It should be turned about 1/6th of a turn counter-clockwise, so that the hatch is almost at the side of the turret but the front vision block is not at 12 o’clock — look closely at photos to see how far to turn it.
Very nice job, love the look of that turret.
The Tamiya has a lock that is supposed to place the hatch at the proper angle. I had to break it off when I was doing the surgery to the. when I went to put it back on it snapped into this position so the lock might’ve been compromised a bit. Now looking at the other turret that maybe Tamiya put the lock in the wrong place? It shouldn’t be too difficult to move it, thanks for the heads up 
@metalhead85
Thanks, I have now a DML early, a BM early, a Tamiya early, and a Asuka early. The Tamiya for some reason just looks better than the other ones. I’d say the Asuka and the Tamiya are neck and neck for just looking like the real thing. The BM was a bit of a surprise but in a positive way, I love the molded in casting marks too, and it was a cinch to convert to an early one without the rear ventilator, but IMO,it’s overall shape is not as good as the Asuka and the Tamiya turrets. The DML turret is old, it probably goes back 25 years. I used to think it was one of the better ones offered in plastic but now it just doesn’t look good compared to these newer molds. I might convert the other Tamiya turret to put it on the old DML hull, that would really improve the tank IMO. Part of me wants to keep the DML all DML just as a way of looking back and comparing the tanks.
This photo from the Sherman Minutia Website shows the orientation pretty well:
Basically, the vision blocks are oriented so the gunner’s sight is out of view as much as possible. On the 75/105 mm turret, the front block is simply at 12 o’clock, but if they did that on the 76 mm turret, the commander would mainly be looking at the back of the sight (which, BTW, is how Academy has it in their M-51 kit, I noticed recently on another forum when someone built that kit)
Excellent work, sir!
As I recall there wasn’t really a planned announcement, just one day the website said we are not taking orders.
Their email was hacked/spoofed as I got a spam email from them last week.
