U-boat War Badge with Diamonds today!

[Norm F]

Lassen's diamond badge, that belonged to collector Bill Stump

A friend of mine has visited Lassen two or three times during the last ten years, and Lassen still had his badge. He is dead now, I think, but in that case, he died long after Bill Stump, so how could Stump have Lassen´s badge? Did Lassen have two badges or is it just the photo, that comes from Stump´s collection???

I think that attribution of the Lassen badge to Bill Stump was an error. Bill did mention that he owned an example of the U-Boat badge in diamonds in his anecdote on his brief meeting with Dönitz, but the photos he posted in 2002 (presumably of his badge?) were of a Type 1 badge with the smaller swastika (photos attached here).

Best regards,
---Norm

[Norm F]

I think that attribution of the Lassen badge to Bill Stump was an error.

The Lassen badge (a Type 2) is shown in Gordon Williamson's "Torpedo Los" on page 201 where the ownership (of the photos anyway) was attributed to Don Frailey.

Best regards,
---Norm

[Norm F]

I just noticed also that in 2002 Bill Stump posted photos of this fake which looks like the same type of fake that is featured in that Russian article in post #74 and posts #88-89 (showing the same hinge and catch), but with an improved version of the maker mark.

Best regards,
---Norm

[Ludwig]

OK, thanks, Norm!

[Norm F]

I also found an incredible photo of the Special Uboot badge awarded to Großadmiral Karl Dönitz. This picture was posted by Christopher Ailsby on his militaria blog, so credits to him.

Source: http://ailsby.blogspot.com.ar/2012/0...1939-1945.html

I honestly don't know whether the photo is real or not but this was a posting from the late Bill Stump in 2002:

"Some of the newest diamonds badges are coming from England into the United States through Christopher Ailsby who "documents" many of the fakes in his books. He has supplie quite a number to the fake seller Roger F. Honts who sells them as original."

This is a great reference thread you have going here Sepp, and I'm not saying that Bill was always right about everything, but we must be careful to examine both sides to each example and each claim as it is presented.

Best regards,
---Norm

[Norm F]

Here's the link to the previous U-Boat badge thread from 2011 which shows three more Type 1 badges:
U-BOAT Badge with Diamonds

Badges:
1) Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock (Oak leaves December 31, 1941) - from Torpedo Los (images from Gordon Williamson's U-Boat website attached here, originally from Helmut Weitze)
2) Adalbert Schnee (Oak leaves July 15, 1942) - from Torpedo Los
3) Peter-Erich Cremer (no Oak leaves so technically shouldn't have been eligible but seems to have owned one) - posted by Stan

Although Torpedo Los suggests the Type 1 badge with the smaller swastika was the later version, all the examples seem likely to have been awarded prior to 1943 making them the earlier type.

Best regards,
---Norm

[Norm F]

Sepp posted just the obverse photo of Stan's "Peter-Erich Cremer badge" in post #10 but here it is again with both obverse and reverse views (from the previous thread). A real beauty.

[Norm F]

And here's the same badge shown with the pin down in Detlev Niemann's 2005 reference catalog.

[chen]

Before and After.

Editor's note: The "Before" photo is the digitally altered version with swastika added (as debunked in post #117).

[Stan]

Great thread guys. I was going to post pictures of my badge today but you saved me the trouble

Anyway, here's one with the pin down.



Stan

[Norm F]

here's one with the pin down.

Thanks Stan.

Best regards,
---Norm

[Norm F]

Before and After.

Very interesting Chen. Can you elaborate?

Best regards,
---Norm

[Ludwig]

Why was Cremer awarded the badge with diamonds? He wasn´t an OL winner.

[Stan]

Well Cremer is now dead so I we will never know the reason but I suppose the award of this decoration was the decision of Doenitz and maybe the fact that Cremer and Doenitz were good friends played a part.

Stan

[chen]

.