This Para Loved His Badge

[Bob Hritz]

This fellow must have loved his badge to have done repairs to the hinge and catch. This is an early nickle silver badge by Wilhelm Deumer and is one of the finest executed patterns.
Bob Hritz

[Frank Heukemes]

Bob,

Your badge has great detail and much character, I love it! I own a few badges with contemporary repairs as well For the story they tell, they are just as desirable as mint ones for me.

Cheers, Frank

[Eric Queen]

Bob,

Very nice piece with a lot of character. Deumer truly makes some of the nicest, most detailed Luftwaffe ( jump ) badges I have seen. I love pieces like this. My favorite badge has three repairs.

Thanks for posting this and please post more.

Eric

[Matt L]

Hi Bob,

Wow, that's a really neat piece- I agree with Frank, the character of your badge makes it just as desirable as one in perfect condition (I actually like it even more). I can't say I'm all that surprised that this Fallschirmjaeger cared for his badge so much-afterall, he went through a hell of a lot to earn it. It would have to have taken a lot of guts to make 6 jumps with those parachutes- even more so since some of the jumps would have been from the belly of a He111 or some of the smaller aircraft used.

Matt

[Mike Kenny]

Another well worn Deumer

Hi Bob,

A very nice badge indeed and one of those that "speak" to you. I agree with Eric's coments about the quality of early Deumer badges.

Here's an image of my own early Deumer example - also well worn! Nickel-silver wreath and tombak eagle with only traces of the fire-gilding remaining and plenty of scratching on the back - none of which I can make out unfortunately. The work in the hinge region looks old and by the way the catch has been folded down I surmise that this badge may have been SEWN on after the pin busted off.

These early Deumer's are similar to the early Junckers (eg the chunky rightmost talon) but, when you compare them side-by-side, they came from different dies (imo).

One thing that has intrigued me with Deumer badges is that there seem to be (at least) two distinct maker marks -
1) those with the umlat over the U in LUDENSCHEID level with the adjacent L and D and
2) badges where the top of the U is level with the L and the D and the umlat sits well above the word LUDENSCHEID.

My early Deumer Para and mid-war zinc Deumer Radio Op/Air Gunner both have the type 1 marking but I have seen other high quality tombak Deumer Para badges with type 2 markings These Para badges also have different right-hand talons (not chunky but similar in size to the left and middle talons). I would be interested in hearing anyone elses thoughts about the two different Deumer maker marks - as well as the observed differences in Deumer Para Badge eagle's talons.

Regards
Mike K




PS: for those derisive of eBay (99% of the time understandable!) this badge came from a lady in a self described one-horse-town in Texas and was described as an "American eagle with swastika"!! I miss eBay bargains like this!!!

[Lorenzo Brown]

Hi Guys. Here is a scan of my Deumer para badge that is noticeably different from Mike's and Bob's. It has the "2nd" type of mark with the large "U". I've always thought that it is an earlier version because I have a 1st pattern Deumer PO badge that has the same style mark (large "U"). What I have also noted about this badge is that the Eagle is identical to that on my JMME para badge, although the wreath, hinge and rivets are distinctly different.


I also have a Deumer Pilot badge and an Observer badge that both have the 1st type mark (small "u") that I always considered to be "second pattern" or mid-war badges. Both of the latter badges have the "shaved" area under the hinge, similar to that shown on Mike's para badge. Note that the PO badge design is the same as on the Pilot badge except for the talons. Also, the Deumer PO badge is smaller and thinner.

[Albert]

Hi Lorenzo,

Sorry, no pics again, but the wreath of my IMME Para badge seems to be identical with the Deumer wreath you posted. That, together with your eagle observation, would indicate that either one of them sub supplied the other or they both went shopping at a third, probably small, sub supplier. Anybody have any thoughts or info?

Regards,
Al

[Lorenzo Brown]

Hi Albert. I would like to see pictures of your badge if possible. Here is a comparison of my JMME and Deumer para badges. On close inspection the wreaths, hinges, pins and rivets are definitely different. Also, I still think that the eagles are the same design, but the rivet locations are different, so they were not cast from the same mold. Also interesting that the JMME hinge is the same "stout" type that appears on ther JMME Pilot and Radio Gunner badges, but the pin has the same flattened feature near the hinge as do the Deumer Pilot and Observer badges I posted earlier.

[Warren O]

Many badges have close similiarities but are not exact, it makes me wonder if companies were using the same artist to create the models for their dies. I've thought in the past that maybe larger companies were selling parts to or unfinished badges to other companies, but maybe these similar traits are because the same artist did the work or an artist used a badge from another company as a model for his own work.
Just athought.
Warren

[Albert]

Hi Lorenzo and all,

I got some pics now but can't post. Can anybody help me out?

Thanks in advance,
Al

[Lorenzo Brown]

Hi Albert. Email them to me and I will post them.

lorenzo111@juno.com