Opening the mystery box: Rettenmaier, maker of the EK II clasp.

[Flemming]

Sorry, forgot that the one Spange is only a drawing.
So 2 Spange from 2 different dies, but they share the same design as the drawing from the P&L catalogue.

This is the best I can explain what I am thinking.

/Flemming

[Giel VW]

That's the identical problem we always have with combat awards. Altough the design matches closely to a drawing it's very hard to attach it to a certain maker. If a badge is really unique with unique features, it has a higher possibility, especially when there are other connecting points towards a maker identification. In this case the spange in the catalog "looks" the same, but can't be narrowed down to this spange imo.

Here's a close up of the datebar. Looking forwards to your response Streptile

[Flemming]

The two date bars.

/Flemming

[kriztof]

amazing discovery!
thanks so much for sharing all this

almost identical to what we call the classic floch fake!
I gotta sit back and assimilate!
regards
jon

Jon I remember one of many posts on these, a few years ago when we speculated that they could turn out to be good, one day.... LOL
Personally, I never cared for this ugly design, and I still don't, but it's nice to see that they may be the real deal. I wonder how many have gone in the garbage ?

Thanks for posting this interesting info.

[Blackopps]

I wonder how many have gone in the garbage ?

This one Did.
http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...d.php?t=671809

[streptile]

Thanks Giel. I will get some scans up asap.

Let me also clarify something since I've gotten a few emails about this. I have NOT said this 21 marked SP2 is authentic. In fact above I said I can't say it's authentic.

I am saying, and this is 100% clear to me, that the design did exist in during the period, and that the drawing in the P&L catalogue is very obviously a drawing of this Spange:



Take a look at the odd things that only a tracing of a photo of this exact piece could possibly render. The irregular shapes of the inside feathers (red and blue below), the weirdly shaped segmented claws, the feather count and position.

There's no question that the P&L drawing is a drawing of this Spange design. Can we at least all agree on that?

[Dietrich Maerz]

There's no question that the P&L drawing is a drawing of this Spange design. Can we at least all agree on that?

No doubt in my mind at all!

Dietrich

[tinmantis]

agreed
I'd say the drawing is 100% from a photo of an existing piece
also
I still think we got to remember a ton of these are post war, there's so many with random stamps and quality. It's going to be a difficult task to work out what's what
regards
jon

[spinnin4s]

Got this a number of years ago along with a small group of original awards. Always though it was bad (marked raised 'L/4' ), but always wondered why someone would go to the trouble of reproducing a rather well made piece but mark it with an obviously bad makers/distributors hallmark?

[streptile]

No doubt in my mind at all!

agreed 'd say the drawing is 100% from a photo of an existing piece

Thank you for weighing in, guys.

Jon's correct that the difficulty now is going to be separating the wheat from the chaff, as we say here: the good stuff from the postwar fakes.

I would say anything marked L/4 is out of the question as original.

[streptile]

Sort of interesting how summarily this find was dismissed seven months ago:

EK 2 Wiederholungsspange L/59 LDO Etui

I guess the lesson is: presentation matters!

[Thomas Durante]

I guess the lesson is: presentation matters!

Ha, Indeed Trevor!

Tom

[Tony T-S]

I would say anything marked L/4 is out of the question as original.

Sorry Streptile, just to clarify, do you mean that L/4 is absolutely original or absolutely not original? I say that because on first reading I took this to mean that it was out of the question original, but I think you may have meant the opposite. Just so that we're all very clear and all that.

I can see a lot of collectors racing off to their junk boxes around about now. Fantastic stuff.

[streptile]

LDO numbers started at L/10 so anything marked L/4 is without question a fake.

[Tony T-S]

Got it. Many thanks