Wilhelm Starz Wound Badge??

[Thomas Durante]

Hi guys,

I am sure some of you saw the Hiscolls update today, which included a WB and packet from Wilhelm Starz, a maker I have never heard about. The badge itself looks quite minty suggesting it has always been with this packet so wondering if anyone has any info on this interesting example? Did one of our members happen to snap it up before I could? would love to see some better closeups of the badge itself and see if we can match it to any other known maker by chance.

Wilhelm Starz is an interesting maker, they are not listed on the PKZ or LDO list. All I could find was that there was a Rudolf Starz as a maker of the KVK2, and incidently also located in Gablonz.

Tom

1a-Hiscolls.jpg 1b-Hiscolls.jpg 1c-Hiscolls.jpg

[chrisje110]

I was to late on that one Tom, Would have loved to buy it! I hope it went to someone on here.

[Guy smith]

The badge after that one looks like the same maker to me.

What do you think?

Guy

[Ronny.R]

Looks to be one more
https://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/for...=922582&page=2

Cheers,
Ronny

[Stepdale]

I saw this one as well but it was already sold; otherwise I would have bought it. Does anybody know what price it sold for?
Dale

[spunkmaja]

Hi guys,

I am sure some of you saw the Hiscolls update today, which included a WB and packet from Wilhelm Starz, a maker I have never heard about. The badge itself looks quite minty suggesting it has always been with this packet so wondering if anyone has any info on this interesting example? Did one of our members happen to snap it up before I could? would love to see some better closeups of the badge itself and see if we can match it to any other known maker by chance.

Wilhelm Starz is an interesting maker, they are not listed on the PKZ or LDO list. All I could find was that there was a Rudolf Starz as a maker of the KVK2, and incidently also located in Gablonz.

Tom

1a-Hiscolls.jpg 1b-Hiscolls.jpg 1c-Hiscolls.jpg

Hi,

I actually got it and it has just arrived.

I have not been able to examine it more closely, but I will make some more images of the set and post it here.

/Jonas

[spunkmaja]

Here is the package

[spunkmaja]

Here is the badge

[Thomas Durante]

Congrats spunkmaja on a very nice addition! Set is in really great condition, thanks for the very good pics of the packet and badge itself. Nice pick up my friend, I am a bit jealous that I didn't get to it first, but very happy it went to a good home.

Ronny, thanks for the link to the other ones posted previously, certainly something to think about. So this brings up an interesting discussion, how does a company like Staerz produce and sell badges if they don't have a PK or LDO license??

Thanks

Tom

[Hans N]

Nice catch Jonas!

Question is which badge if any belongs to the packet? The Militaria Berlin and this one do not match in design

[chrisje110]

Tom, I think Starz was just a small retailer. I can't imagine they really produced the badges themself.

[Thomas Durante]

Tom, I think Starz was just a small retailer. I can't imagine they really produced the badges themself.

Hi Chris,

Yes, I agree with this but its my understanding that in order for anyone to sell official badges for retail trade they had to have an LDO license to do so.

Tom

[chrisje110]

How strong was the LDO in enforcing these rules ? It is shown here that a small maker without LDO license could retail black woundbadges, so it seems that the LDO was letting some things slip. I can imagine that there where plenty more small retailers that we still don't know about and that are not listed on the PKZ/LDO lists we have.

[Thomas Durante]

How strong was the LDO in enforcing these rules ? It is shown here that a small maker without LDO license could retail black woundbadges, so it seems that the LDO was letting some things slip. I can imagine that there where plenty more small retailers that we still don't know about and that are not listed on the PKZ/LDO lists we have.

Hi Chris,

Wound Badges were one of the few combat badges that were heavily regulated by the PKZ, like EKs, RKs and Eastern Front Medals, that is why most are marked (unlike IABs or PABs for instance). We also see this heavy hand of the PKZ on the WBs in the obverse design, so many makers are near identical. So that would lead us to believe the private sale of WBs would be well regulated as well. Its possible makers like Starz slipped through the cracks and selling without an LDO license but I would think there is more of a chance that our current known LDO list is possibly incomplete. Perhaps makers like Starz had an LDO license and we just don't recognize the number yet.

Tom