Gold Wound Badge

[Brad Posey]

I have had this for a while, but want you guys to take a look at it. It is non-magnetic and looks like it has been "fuervergoldet" because the gilding is extremely good.

I hope you can see the very pointy pin tip, I am normally used to seeing a blunt tip, but that is on the magnetic ones.




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[Brad Posey]

Last one of the back and pin

[joeimwalle]

wow that is a bright gold wound badge. love the color ,
that would really stand out on a portrait postcard if the guy was wearing it on his uniform.

im no expert in these but it looks nice to me.
i too have had wound badges with the sharp pin so they come in diff makes, blunt,pointy, half way between.

still like it though...
joe

[Brad Posey]

Thanks Joe, the gilding is almost blinding on this one and was hard to photograph on account of it. It has a really nice "buttery" gold look like I am accustomed to seeing on much earlier artifacts.

Since I have not encountered another like it I want to get some opinions here.



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[Ammersee]

What is "fuervergoldet" ? I've never heard that term. Ammersee

[Brad Posey]

Fuervergoldet = the “Mercury Amalgam Gilding” process also known as “Fire Gilding”. It was used from ancient times on, but is rarely used today because of the dangers of working with mercury.

I am not saying the badge was fire gilded, only that it looks that way.

Here is what Wikipedia says about it:

“Fire-gilding or Wash-gilding is a process by which an amalgam of gold is applied to metallic surfaces, the mercury being subsequently volatilized, leaving a film of gold or an amalgam containing from 13 to 16% of mercury…………”





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[saschaw]

Wouldn't that be "feuervergoldet" in German... ?

Have not much expertise with WBs, but this one almost looks to good to me...

[Brad Posey]

That is why I am posting it here to get other opinions about it.

[Ammersee]

Fuervergoldet = the “Mercury Amalgam Gilding” process also known as “Fire Gilding”.

Okay, now I know what you are talking about. I'm familiar with the process but didn't know the name. I'll bet there were some crazy medal workers back in the day from breathing mercury. Think of all the ancient people that died while they were experimenting with things like "fire gilding". Ammersee

[Brad Posey]

I bet mercury and other heavy metal poisoning was a common thing in earlier times, but probably back then they knew nothing about it and probably considered metal workers witches once they flipped thier lid's.


Is there any reason to doubt this badge's authenticity at this point other than for reasons that it looks too good to be true? For that very reason is why I posted it here, but at the same time I can find nothing wrong with it.

Anyone else have any negative feelings about it? I would hate to display it next to my good stuff it was bad, but I would certainly hate to send it off to the scrap metal yard and it turn out later to be good.


Thanks!


Brad


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