KM Badges - Fresh From The Stores

[TobyR]

Hi Everybody,

Well, this weekend past, I attended one of the UK's militaria fairs - would have been a poor show, but for an end of afternoon find: 2 Kriegsmarine badges in unissued condition and complete with their original cartons (or at least I believe they are).

Here's a shot of the cartons:

[TobyR]

As you can the carton on the left, has some writing on the lid. Could this be period?

As I understand it the badges were bought from the estate of a UK veteran turned collector who recently passed away.

Here's a sneak peek at what's inside:

(I hope I'm not overplaying these but I think you'll agree its worth the suspense)

[TobyR]

And lids off:

[TobyR]

As you can now see, the badges are:

Schwerin 2nd Pattern E-Boat badge

and a

Friedrich Orth Aux. Cruiser badge

The badges are, as the day they left the stores, but for the loss of the gilding. Traces are still apparent on the E-Boat badge, and the Cruiser has aged wonderfully, with the gilding very strong to the top of the badge but drifting out lower down.

Here are some shots of the badges:

[TobyR]

And the reverse:

[TobyR]

The reverse of the e-boat is closer to grey / black (looks lighter in the photo). Interestingly, the only wear to the reverse, is to the highpoints of the hinge. However, if you look at the inside of the box, you can see grey marks where the hinge makes contact.

Here's an angle shot showing the level of finish remaining to the top section of the e-boat.

[TobyR]

And now for the FO Aux. Cruiser:

[TobyR]

(the portion of the globe is darker in reality than the above photo)

And now for the reverse:

(this badge should be of interest to Philippe, featuring as it does, the 'unknown' square mark to the reverse)

[TobyR]

And the catch - notice the gilt on the catch / solder - still very bright:

[TobyR]

And the hinge:

[TobyR]

And the mm:

[TobyR]

(just a thought but could the 'square' be a rivet mark, for when the badges were two piece?)

And finally, an angle shot of the Cruiser badge:

(hope you've enjoyed these - thanks Toby).

[Philippe DB]

Hi Toby,


Both look like very nice examples. Really great find.

Isn't it amazing how even kept in a box the finish suffers over time.

And you right it's nice to see another one with that mark. Only strange thing is the maker mark doesn't seem to be completely formed on your badge but I guess stranger things happened.

KR
Philippe

[TobyR]

Hi Philippe,

Thanks for replying and glad to hear you like them.

Re. the finish, yes, it's amazing. I suppose you could say the only thing that has aged these badges is time - no contact, no wear.

As for the mark, whilst I was first researching them on the forum late Sunday, I found another forum member mention the incomplete 'O' on an FO Aux. Cruiser badge.

All the best,

Toby.

[MH184]

Very nice Toby.


Kind regards,

Marcus