Coastal artillery RS - your opinions please

[luftwaffenkopf]

these are all i have from the seller. not much to go on... what do you think? thank you

[kenneth wolfe]

Doesn't look good from here and the pictures don't help. Take some better ones and I'm sure you'll get some more comments.

[luftwaffenkopf]

thank you. the seller is reluctant to send any closeups, a sign in itself. does the catch look right to you? that's what's throwing me off...

[John T]

I think it is double marked R.S. and L/58

[luftwaffenkopf]

I think it is double marked R.S. and L/58

L/58 is Souval. would the double stamp guarantee it's authentication or have you seen fakes that do that as well? that would be amazing...

[John T]

Well---there are different theories as to the double marked Souval's ...there is really no solid proof as to why they had both markings but you will see that once in a while on KM pieces from Souval, from the pix the badge looks okay in the sense that I can not dismiss it, but the catch looks a bit off...closer pix are needed, John

[John R.]

Lack of cooperation from the seller is enough to not buy it, good or not. The images are poor and from what I can see, probably not a period badge.

John

[Martin W]

Lack of cooperation from the seller is enough to not buy it, good or not. The images are poor and from what I can see, probably not a period badge.

John

I agree.

Also,most of the CA badges by RS that i have seen and are considered period feature a "C" wire catch and not a "flat" wire catch.

The double marking on KM awards is considered by many to be a sign of Souval's postwar production?

Regards,Martin.

[Silesien]

Difficult to see the catch in those small pictures, but it does look like that tell-tale catch that was used on their postwar production. As far as their markings go, I have a letter dated 14.Nov. 1972 from Rudolf Souval KG, signed by their Herr Ludwig Umlauf, which says that during the war they used "RS" for decorations for the Armed Forces, & "L/58" for delivery to dealers, & another mark for delivery to the RZM. So anything double-marked seems wierd to me, as far as it being wartime. Postwar, they used the L/58 marking on anything & everything, they'd wack it on badges sideways, crooked, anywhere the stamp would land on the badge, they just didn't care. That Coastal Artillery badge ( item 5/7 ) was only 190 Schillings at the time, - $8.93.