new pieces

[tom hansen]

Hello-
I have a question which may be entirely subjective. I am collecting examples of the various wermacht combat awards and have several EK2s, EK1s,wound badges, merit crosses, a gold cross, and have recently purchased a second knights cross. The interest in my collecting is from a historical standpoint to have tactile representations of the available awards, and not a collection of all the manufacturers of the individual awards, which would seem almost cost prohibitive given the large number of firms for a given award.
That being said, as far as a new addition to the above, would one consider the addition of a german cross in silver or a good example of the spanish cross in silver or gold to be more appropriate? How about the knigths cross of the merit cross? Does one have an opinion regarding the further awards, given the large number of possibilities, that would round out examples of the heirarchy of german military awards?
I know this is subjective and may raise a few chuckles from experienced collectors, but would appreciate any guidance in this regard from that same group. Thanks

[chris clark]

it is my opinion that you carnt go without a good german cross gold or silver in a collection.then again it depends what areas you wish to consentrate in.check out the dk threads and get a feel of what other collectors think.i have a dkis and find it awsume to own and admire.the other items you list do not interest me as much.hope all that makes sence and welcome to the forum

[Glenn R]

For me, I would add to that list the close combat clasp in it's various grades.

[Mark S.]

Hi Tom

If your focus on awards is steered towards the combat aspect, then you will want a german Cross in Gold, if your thrust is more geared towards Non combat, but with a military angle, then perhaps a German Cross in silver would be more appropriate. A Knights Cross of the war merit cross would also fit snugly (though not exclusively) into this scenario.

The awards you find on a Gauleiter wont be the same ones as you see on a Panzergrenadier. Where do you want to go with your collection is the first question you need to ask yourself, and from there read up on the various awards and what they were given out for, that should dictate which ones would be appropriate or not. Combat, Party or Civil? How you would explore the overlap would be entirely up to you.

[Dez H]

I would go the German Cross in gold, they are a stunning award, hold one in your hands and examine the complexity of the construction. These pieces are fascinating to research and study. I am in the process of obtaining my 3rd DkiG and I can tell you, once the bug bites they are hard to turn away from.

[tom hansen]

I would go the German Cross in gold, they are a stunning award, hold one in your hands and examine the complexity of the construction. These pieces are fascinating to research and study. I am in the process of obtaining my 3rd DkiG and I can tell you, once the bug bites they are hard to turn away from.

I have a nice Zimmerman german cross in gold (I agree, they are impressive). You guys think simply continuing with the direct combat medals such as acquiring further cross in gold examples, as well as RKs and EK1s when available is more interesting than the "non-combat" cross in silver or knights cross of the merit cross? It seems as though the cross in silver, while also impressive and more rare, is almost maligned by collectors relative to the cross in gold as it is not a combat specific decoration. Am I wrong? It also seems as though the knights cross to the merit cross, while rare is viewed in poor regard relative to the german cross in gold as well, understandably, the RK.
I have read as much as I can find about these decorations (but yet am a novice), and am ordering additional texts almost on a weekly basis. But while I read and learn about these medals, it seems as though certain decorations noted above are the "grimy cousins" of the collector world and strictly the direct combat medals are favored, thus commanding increased prices. Is this off- am a newcomer and find it perplexing.

[Dez H]

I have a nice Zimmerman german cross in gold (I agree, they are impressive). You guys think simply continuing with the direct combat medals such as acquiring further cross in gold examples, as well as RKs and EK1s when available is more interesting than the "non-combat" cross in silver or knights cross of the merit cross? It seems as though the cross in silver, while also impressive and more rare, is almost maligned by collectors relative to the cross in gold as it is not a combat specific decoration. Am I wrong? It also seems as though the knights cross to the merit cross, while rare is viewed in poor regard relative to the german cross in gold as well, understandably, the RK.
I have read as much as I can find about these decorations (but yet am a novice), and am ordering additional texts almost on a weekly basis. But while I read and learn about these medals, it seems as though certain decorations noted above are the "grimy cousins" of the collector world and strictly the direct combat medals are favored, thus commanding increased prices. Is this off- am a newcomer and find it perplexing.

Tom; Collecting is all about what YOU like and are INTERESTED in, collect what you want, don't be infulenced by others in the sense that it takes over what you are genuinely interested in and enjoy reading about. This can often change over time. When I first started out I bought anything German I could get my hands on NSDAP stuff, PAB's, armbands, medal bars, imperial, third reich, didnt matter I just wanted the "stuff." Had a great ort level NSDAP leaders visor cap, PAB 25. Nowdays I have purged my collection of most of my first generation items and solely collect Iron Crosses from 1813 - 1957, but that is just me. Its ok to have a few interests, for example I have been looking at German stamps and coins, keep telling myself I should start collecting these someday, maybe I will, maybe I wount. I buy what interests me and maybe that will change over time. Items like the DKiS and the RKdasKVK are very much undervalued at the moment, the Knights Cross of the war merit cross is probably 10 times as rare as the RK yet sells for a third of the price. DKiS seems to hover just below the price of the DKiS, expect these to shoot up over the next few years as collectors pick up on their true rarity and value.

So at the end of the day you need to work out where your collection is going and keep yourself interested in it.

[tom hansen]

Thanks Dez-
These decorations do seem interesting to me despite the apparent lack of interest by many others, so I think I will go about adding them over the next several months. I see that Detlev Neimann, Bill Shea, and Leisure Galleries are sponsors that have good reputations. I have bought some things recently from Joe D'Errico, who seems to have a good reputation on this forum. Are these all good sources? Thanks

[Dez H]

These dealers you mention are some of the best names in our hobby, they always seem to come up with the choice offerings and often the best of the best. However as has been said here on the forums countless times you need to know what you are buying. Don’t trust the dealers to be always right, do your own footwork, research and ask questions. Anything I buy I pour over with a fine toothbrush to ensure what I am getting is exactly what it is supposed to be. I see that you are in the states so I imagine you would want to stick to continental USA for your items for ease of shipping and no customs hassles.

Personally I only buy from within Australia these days, the postage system is a joke.