Were maker marked EK1's gov issue?

[LarryHW.]

Most of the mint/near mint EK1's I see have either a maker's mark or LDO number on them. Some have said that the "government issued" awards are the unmarked ones. I am still not clear. Did these marked EK1's tend to be the government issued ones, or were they privately purchased as secondary versions to be kept nice and worn on more "formal" occasions?

[Dietrich Maerz]

Hi Larry,

the current wisdom is that the PKZ-numbered pieces, ie. 1, 20, 7, ...went to the PKZ for the purpose of an actual award. The LDO-numbered pieces, i.e. L/12, L13,... were marked in this way for the private retail sector. Unmarked pieces are earlier (pre-LDO) and could be both.
So the best bet for having an actual award piece is a PKZ-numbered piece, followed by unnumbered - as we know today ....

Dietrich

[Biro]

So the best bet for having an actual award piece is a PKZ-numbered piece, followed by unnumbered - as we know today .Dietrich

Larry

Dietrich has summed it up well - there is a notable exception (although I'm sure no the only one) to the 'LDO = private purchase' scenario of course, but in a higher grade than the EK1.

The L/12 marked Knights crosses originally made for private purchase were in fact handed in on mass to be used as award pieces, and indeed many were. Very many.

Pretty much everything you need to know is summed up here in two bite size chunks ......

The LDO and its marks

Official List of 1939 EK Manufacturers

Marshall

[LarryHW.]

Dietrich---You make sense, but it gets me thinking that that the Pkz and non-marked pieces should be more desireable than the LDO ones, as being official issue. Yet, we know that does not often seem to be so. Go figure.

[Marc Garlasco]

It is just a stamp on a cross - nothing more. It is still made by the same company and is still a real EK. Why should the letter L or lack of it make it more or less desireable? Private purchase items were worn as replacements or on other uniforms. And look at the most mint of all EKs, the marked 26 BH Mayer, not an LDO marked.

Marc

[TerryG]

I guess it is a matter of choice and taste but some people like to own a piece that they know is likely to have been awarded in the field. In fact I seem to remember a very old thread where Gordon Williamson stated just that, i.e. that he would only collect pkz-marked EK´s.....simply a matter of choice for ones collection.

[hagwalther]

... he would only collect pkz-marked EK´s.....simply a matter of choice for ones collection.

I tend to agree and leave LDO marked pieces alone although I do have a KVK 1 with both LDO and PKZ markings.

Regards...