CEJ Juncker pilot´s badge

[Frank Heukemes]

This one just in today. Worn and repaired but with character, a quite rare CEJ marked Juncker pilot´s badge.

Note that:

-rivets are period repaired (replaced), you can even see the rivets from the obverse (see wing close up shots) if you look hard enough. But somebody did a very good job blending them in with the feather structure

-catch is period replaced

-filemarks in the middle eagle reverse around the CEJ mark are from filing down (flattening) the rivets

Cheers, Frank H.

[Frank Heukemes]

rev

[Frank Heukemes]

mark

[Frank Heukemes]

eagle center

[Frank Heukemes]

left wing

[Frank Heukemes]

right wing

[Frank Heukemes]

replaced catch

[Tim Calvert]

Hi Muni,

Congrads! These are rare in any shape. Nice patina.

I wonder how many Third Reich badges were stepped on after a soldier was captured? The wing wasn't broken, so I doubt that happened to yours.

Prost!

[ERIC S.]

clap clap clap!!

Hey Frank,
Great find my friend! Those CEJ marked badges are rarer then hens teeth in any condition! Very nice repairs to that badge, hardly noticeable. If I may ask, where did you acquire such a "rare bird" ?
ERIC

[Frank Heukemes]

Thanks for the kind words, my friends! I also like it very much, in spite of the condition it is in. The repairs tell a story and the brass chocolate patina looks great.

It came to me from the collection of Harald Geissler, whose book on Iron Crosses you might know and who is a known and well respected person in the German collecting community. Due to the condition, he gave it to me for a very fair price!

Actually it is a long story. I got to know this Bavarian guy who owns all these ribbons that I currently are selling for him. He is acquainted with Geissler and brought me into the picture. The excellent condition FLL CCC that I acquired recently and showed here was also from the Geissler collection.
He doesn´t sell off his collection though, it seems he just had some "surplus".

I enjoy shopping at good dealers, especially at the ones with fair prices and good service. But it seems I more and more have to depend on connections like these, because some prices become ridiculous and hardly affordable for me. I collected very "secluded" in the past, never had "collector friends" until I joined this forum.

Cheers, Frank H.

[Joseph D'Errico]

Hello Frank,

Very nice example and thank you for posting the pics, anther one for my reference files.

May, I ask what the price point was, just in case I should be so luckey as to have the chance to buy a similiar example.

Thank you,
JD

[Tim Calvert]

Here is another CEJ marked badge...

[Tim Calvert]

rear...

[Frank Heukemes]

Dear JD,

Normally and if in the condition like Tim´s these command insane prices nowadays. Like a cased "regular" Buntmetall Juncker and then some. But even harder than paying for one is FINDING one. I was lucky enough to get a badge that for my taste is a good compromise between condition and price. I paid 380.- Euros.

I don´t know what Tim paid, but I heard this guitar hero had wonderful guitars BEFORE he owned that badge.

Cheers, Frank H.

[Frank Heukemes]

Btw, what do especially you Luftwaffe guys think about the finish on my eagle? As you can still see on the obverse and reverse center and swaz, the eagle has a heavy bright silver plating as opposed to the regular "brüniert" Juncker eagle finish on Tim´s badge.

Cheers, Frank H.