It's a nice-looking badge, and if I'm correct, it's fairly rare and desirable.
But the pin is a red flag for me. I've never seen such an attachment device on a tinnie, and it also makes no sense. It would be almost impossible to get the pin through a wool tunic without first making a huge hole with an icepick. I'm no expert on this particular badge, but I'd pass due to the pin alone. It would only make sense if you used a medal loop, but I don't even think it's an official party award.
Thanks for all the information. A customer walked in the door of my store from Japan and said he bought all these items from Manions and another auction house in Germany whose name escapes me at this second. I knew right away some of it was crap but I did not want to venture an opinion without being sure.
Funny enough the first photo shows that it is 800 marked. He is supposed to come back to the store tomorrow. Lets see if he wants to sell
I agree that this is a very special badge; it's referred to as the Silver Eagle, the Commemorative Honor Badge of Gau Thüringen, presented by Gauleiter Fritz Sauckel. The reverse includes a die-stamped presentation number -- 172 in this case -- and that may render this piece able to be researched as to who it was awarded to.
Gau Thüringen celebrated its tenth anniversary throughout June of 1933 and the event tinnie which includes the date of "4.6.33" indicates the main celebration of that anniversary, held in Erfurt. Another tinnie exists showing the date as "6.33;" this badge was used at other celebratory events throughout the Gau that month. But the Thüringen Silver Eagle was a very special honor badge created by Sauckel, patterned after the event tinnies of 1933 but without indication of a particular date, and this award was conferred by the Gauleiter to 'worthy recipients' over the next number of years. Each of these Silver Eagles was numbered and the pin attachment was that of a barrel hinged affair, which made it much more durable. Such badges were normally worn on uniforms and attached by use of two thread loops affixed to the uniform left pocket fabric, which obviated having to punch holes in the material in order to mount them, the same way a number of other military and civil badges were attached.
Kurt Pößnecker of Hirschberg was the original recipient of this badge. His NSDAP number was 20654.
Although those do not carry a date, the first thousand recipients or so were awarded those during 1933 Gautag so they made their debut at the same time as the tinnies of similar design.
Contrary to popular belief Sauckel (or any other Gauleiter for that matter) was not the only person to confer Gau-Ehrenzeichen for their respective district.
Great badge in good condition. Congrats!
Quite a helpful comment, Matt. I am wondering who -- other than the respective Gauleiter -- would be authorized to confer the award of a Gau-Ehrenzeichen?
I also note that Kurt Pößnecker was a Golden Party Badge holder.
Quite a helpful comment, Matt. I am wondering who -- other than the respective Gauleiter -- would be authorized to confer the award of a Gau-Ehrenzeichen?
Reichsfuhrer-SS has been known to award a gau badge or two.
Interesting, Matt...thanks for this bit of historic info! I would think that if the RFSS presented a Gau Honor Badge, that would be seen to be a slight aimed at the particular Gauleiter, even if he presented the badge to an SS member who was resident in that Gau! Of course, most of the Gauleiters were also SS members, but it seems that would be akin to Viktor Lutze stepping in to make the award of a Gau Honor Badge to an SA member, just because that particular Gauleiter happened to also be an honorary SA member! For either to do so would appear to demean the Gauleiter in question. Of course, we also know that these people meddled in each other's territories regularly; indeed, that was one of the intentions behind the overlapping political structure itself!
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