The Machinegunner Sharpshooters Badge

[Don D.]

Two nice ones Eric. You beat me out of the first one. Had I known you were bidding I could have saved you some money.

[Hoss]

Only money Don I'll return the favour on the next one...er hang on that didn't sound right.
Also found a horror pic of a copy have a stiff drink first now in fairness is sold as but you never know.

Eric

[gregM]

WOW, I could even spot that one.

[Don D.]

Eric, you need to issue a warning before showing something like that. Now I must go and wash my eyeballs.

[Brian L.]

Eric, you need to issue a warning before showing something like that. Now I must go and wash my eyeballs.

Perhaps it's real and was just hit by a spray of bullets. That might account for all the pitting. Ya gotta have faith, Don.

On a more serious note: I know it's been commented on before. But, I've seen more and more Freikorps pics of late with the MG badge with a black cloth backing being worn. So, if it hasn't already been declaratively stated, I believe that it isn't a random thing and was likely the style adopted among the Freikorps.

One sold last month on eBay for well over 200 Euros, I believe, which was part of a grouping to an officer in the Eiserne Eskadron. I got his collar badge which had a black velvet backing. His MG badge had the same black velvet backing, as did the single shoulder board in the lot.

Does anyone else share this idea?

[Hoss]

I don't know the one I posted has the feld cloth underneath the black, friend of mine (may have been David) commented a Saxon thing?? I've even thought a remembrance for a fallen comrade on walking out dress, my mini has black cloth.
The latest dated photo I've seen of the badge still being worn is 1924 but these had just regular grey cloth backing.

Eric

[joeimwalle]

couple of pics

Here are a couple of pics from a artillery mans album late war.
with some nice mg patches being worn on a few men
looks like flanders 1917-18 with the captions on some of the pics.

some nice bunker shots, with ammo and grenades just laying around willy nilly on the ground...

enjoy the pics joe

[joeimwalle]

bad placment of ammo

and the two pics of the ammo just piled up near bunkers

[Don D.]

Perhaps it's real and was just hit by a spray of bullets. That might account for all the pitting. Ya gotta have faith, Don.

On a more serious note: I know it's been commented on before. But, I've seen more and more Freikorps pics of late with the MG badge with a black cloth backing being worn. So, if it hasn't already been declaratively stated, I believe that it isn't a random thing and was likely the style adopted among the Freikorps.

One sold last month on eBay for well over 200 Euros, I believe, which was part of a grouping to an officer in the Eiserne Eskadron. I got his collar badge which had a black velvet backing. His MG badge had the same black velvet backing, as did the single shoulder board in the lot.

Does anyone else share this idea?

I tend to agree that the black backing is post WW1. Perhaps Freicorps or early Weimar?


Joe, nice photos.

[Hoss]

Joe
Great pictures is it captioned 'Molenhoek'? I bet some of those lids have the insig. on them, hard to make out though.

Eric

[Hoss]

I tend to agree that the black backing is post WW1.

Its looking that way Don but why? Anyway interesting.

Eric

[joeimwalle]

Joe
Great pictures is it captioned 'Molenhoek'? I bet some of those lids have the insig. on them, hard to make out though.

Eric

Hey eric,
i think that is what the caption name is, as for the helmets to hard to tell, but the officer has a camo cover over his helmet, he is also in the mg ammo can pic with helmet off.

[Brian L.]

Its looking that way Don but why? Anyway interesting.

Eric

I focus solely on Freikorps material and would suggest it's nothing more than aesthetics, as well as historical reference. Black was a favourite colour for sleeve, collar badge backing and cuff-titles and was also a reference back to the black Freikorps Lützow Hussars during the Wars of Liberation in 1813-14.


Here's the set to the Freikorps Eiserne Eskadron officer to which I referred. It appears the MG badge you recently acquired was the same one from this set.

I bought the collar badge privately before the MG badge was put up for auction. So, I know the provenance of these and know they all originally belonged to the same Freikorps officer.

[Don D.]

Its looking that way Don but why? Anyway interesting.

Eric

Could be a unit specific sorta thing Eric.

[Hoss]

Hey eric,
i think that is what the caption name is, as for the helmets to hard to tell, but the officer has a camo cover over his helmet, he is also in the mg ammo can pic with helmet off.

That would put close to Nijmegen wonder if the blockhouse is still there anyway thanks Joe I could look at photos all day long.

Eric