Polizei Enlisted Grade police Eagle Patterns

[W.Unland]

Hello,

Here is the first part of the essay I wrote on police sleeve eagles. This section precedes the thread on reproductions posted earlier; and the references made in that thread are to the classifications made herein.

Once again I fear I am making "much ado about nothing", and if this is too long and of little interest I apologize. Police sleeve eagles have become a bit of a passion with me, a passion I fear that is not shared by all. If it is of any value to the reader I am happy to have presented it.

Regards,

William Unland

German Police Sleeve Eagles (1936-1945

As in any study of the relics of this period, this essay will of necessity be limited to an examination of those materials available to the author at the time of its preparation, and cannot be considered all inclusive. Unfortunately, insignia of this period in history have been reproduced and counterfeited since the end of the war. The true ?experts?, who were involved in the manufacture of these materials, are nearly all gone. Some were even involved in reproducing the materials after the war to make money in the depressed post war economy . Consequently, there is no authority to consult regarding the authenticity of insignia, and expertise in this subject can only be gained through a study of the surviving written uniform regulations and the analysis of actual physical artifacts. It is hoped that this presentation will assist the reader in learning some of the criteria useful in determining the authenticity of insignia purported to be of period manufacture and use.

In 1936, with the rise to power of the National Socialist Worker?s Party (NAZI) in Germany, the local police agencies throughout the ?Reich? were consolidated under one central authority. With this nationalization, uniforms were standardized, and the wearing of the ?new? national emblem of an eagle clutching a wreath enclosed swastika, was ordered for all branches of the government, including the police. These insignia were worn on the left sleeve of the uniform blouse.

The design of this ?police eagle? consisted of the national eagle superimposed over a wreath of oak leaves as shown here. This particular insignia was unique to the police, and was a symbol of ?police power? much as a badge is today in many countries. It was also worn by military policemen when acting in a police function, in addition to their normal military insignia.

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Typical early pattern sleeve eagle

Officers wore this insignia in hand embroidered bullion thread. This essay, however; will limit itself to a discussion of insignia for enlisted ranks. During the pre-war years, the name of the enlisted police officer?s jurisdiction was embroidered above the eagle. With the war this was discontinued in the belief that it might aid in enemy intelligence operations, and the removal of district names was ordered. Subsequently, these insignia were produced without naming.

These insignia were embroidered in different colors to designate the branch of the police to which the wearer belonged. Orange, as shown above, was the color worn by the Gendarmerie, or rural police which were responsible for policing the mountainous and sparsely populated areas of the Reich.

Edited December 29, 2011 by Chairman

[W.Unland]

Green designated the Schutzpolizei or large municipal and armed ?barracks? riot police units. Some of these units were ?militarized? with the outbreak of the war and formed into ?regiments? under the control of the Waffen SS. Personnel in these units, however; continued to wear the green police insignia until late in the war.

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Carmine red was worn by the Schutzpolizei d. Gemeinden, which constituted the small municipality police forces, which were organized and controlled by local city governments.

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Carmine pink was the color designating the Feuerschutzpolizei and Feuerwehr which were the firefighting services and armed fire police.

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Yellow/gold was utilized by the Wasserschutzpolizei or harbor and waterways patrols.

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[W.Unland]

White/gray indicated the Verwaltungpolizei which were the non-criminal administrative police.

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Their duties included building and health inspections, as well as running the central administrative offices of the police. Similar white insignia were also worn by all female police employees.

Finally, red was worn by the Werkehrspolizei, or traffic police.

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Late in the war a some non-police government services were incorporated into the police and were authorized to wear a police eagle. One of these organizations was the Emergency Technical Assistance Corp, or TENO. I assume they were given police powers to make their entry into war zones and areas bombed more easy. As their insignia was black they wore a black sleeve eagle as shown here.

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Another organization absorbed into the police was the Air Raid Protection Service or Luftschutz. They wore police eagles embroidered on a Luftwaffe air force gray back ground cloth rather than the typical police blue-green.

These various insignia were manufactured by innumerable local and national firms, both large and small. In fact, it seems that the manufacture of all types of insignia during the period became a cottage industry with much of it manufactured at homes .

It appears from an analysis of surviving materials that many of these companies choose to utilized their own patterns in the production of sleeve eagles, rather than follow a ?design? issued by a central authority. Consequently; there is no ?standard? with which to judge the originality of an insignia being examined. In some very few case sales samples and catalogs have survived showing ?original? insignia. One such catalog page is shown below. Because of this surviving catalog, this ?pattern? of eagle can confidently be judged to be of period manufacture.

Unfortunately, such clear evidence of period manufacture cannot be found for the vast majority of insignia. Consequently, an analysis of ?style?, manufacturing technique, materials utilized, and period photographs is the only means available to ?authenticate? such insignia. The author has spent considerable effort doing just that, and just such analysis is the basis upon which this essay is built.

[W.Unland]

Third Reich Period German Police Sleeve Eagles

An Analysis of Manufacturer?s Pattern Variations

In recent years the collecting of Third Reich period German police insignia, particularly sleeve eagles, has become increasingly popular. With this increase in interest, the prices of such relics has risen dramatically, as has the number of counterfeits and reproductions for sale in the marketplace. Because of this, a careful study of the know authentic eagle patterns and designs, as well as an examination of the recognized forgeries has become increasingly important to the serious collector of such items.

To begin with, it is important to recognize that there are many, many variations and patterns of authentic police eagles. Whereas the military and political insignia produced during the Third Reich period was closely controlled and regulated by the various military clothing depots and the Reich Supply Ministry ( RZM), police insignia were produced locally by countless firms following sometimes rather vague specification issued by the central police authorities. Consequently, there are potentially hundreds of authentic variations in police sleeve eagles. Obviously the vast majority of sleeve insignia were produced in great number by the larger, centralized firms. They are the most commonly encountered patterns and are well recognized by collectors. It is important to remember , however; that many small town tailors also produced insignia of which perhaps only a few have survived. These ?unknown? pattern eagles are none the less authentic than the more often encountered patterns, and care must be taken when dismissing a sleeve eagle as a reproduction based solely on whether or not it is of a recognizable design or pattern.

In the early years, all police sleeve eagles were embroidered, later they were machine woven. Officer?s eagles were hand embroidered in bullion thread. Enlisted ranks eagles were machine embroidered, either as one off pieces by an operator following a basic chalked down ?pattern? or by sophisticated for their time repeating embroiders following standard pattern ?data? punched into cards which were ?read? by the machines. Obviously the hand produced eagles vary widely. Even eagles produced by the same hand are rarely ?identical?, but show slight variations pointing to their small one off production. The machine read period eagles are always exactly the same, and the patterns are faithfully reproduced. Reproductions are likewise always exactly the same as they are produced on modern computer assisted embroidery machines which always turn out identical products. This makes them easier to recognize, once criteria have been established to identify them as reproductions.

The eagle patterns discussed here are presented in no particular order, and the designations used to identify them are established for the purposes of this discussion only. There is of yet no widely accepted standard designation for these ?types? of insignia. Hopefully, as collectors become more interested in this subject, a standardized system of identification will be adapted.

[W.Unland]

Type 1.

At first, the specifications for this insignia were rather vague, and early insignia display incredible variation in design and pattern. The pattern considered one of the earliest is shown here.

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The basic design of the police sleeve eagle as shown above will remain the same throughout the Third Reich period, but this early insignia has some interesting peculiarities. The three ribbons at the bottom of the wreath follow a distinct non-parallel pattern (1). The leaves making up the wreath are of two patterns (2), the head lacks detail and has a thin hooked beak (3), and the body is ?bottle? shaped and quilted (4).

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These eagles appear to have been produced using a machine assisted pattern reading system as all examples encountered are identical, as shown here.

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The names of the city and jurisdiction were clearly embroidered above the eagle after the eagle was produced as the font style and thread color varies from example to example, but the eagles themselves are always identical, and obviously created on the same machine. To date examples of this eagle have been encountered for the Gendarmerie (orange), Schutzpolizei (green), and Feuerwehr (carmine on blue). It would not be surprising to see it in other colors as well. It appears to have been manufactured by a large firm with a large distribution area.

[W.Unland]

Type 2.

The next pattern to be considered is somewhat similar, and is also considered an early pattern. This particular eagle is actually a Gendarmerie eagle, but the orange dye used to color the thread had oxidized away, and appears white here.

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It is distinguishable by the three parallel ribbons at the bottom of the wreath (1),

the quilted chest (2), small head with hooked beak (3), and upswept secondary wing feathers (4). Many who have studied these insignia believe that eagles with three ribbons at the bottom of the wreath, as in this and the preceding example, are early patterns as all later eagles display crossed ribbons in that location.

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Like the eagle shown above, all examples of this eagle so far encountered have been identical, as shown here. Consequently; it must be presumed that these were manufactured using an automated process. Examples of this pattern have been observed in all branch colors. Unfortunately, this pattern has been reproduced lately, and care must be taken when examining these.

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Edited June 27, 2006 by W.Unland

[W.Unland]

Type 3.

The next pattern is also a ?three ribbons? pattern. Although very similar to the previous example, upon close examination it differs in some significant ways.

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This eagle also has three parallel ribbons at the bottom of the wreath (1). It also has a small head with hooked beak, but the head is decidedly pointed at the top (2). It has a quilted chest (3), but unlike the previous eagle, the winglets are down curving, and only reach halfway to the top of the wings (4).

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I believe these eagles were produced ?one off? by machine operators following a general pattern as all examples show slight variations. As can be seen in this photo, these two eagles are clearly the same pattern, but the heads are rendered slightly differently, and the details of the wreath leaves vary slightly. It is also of interest to note that the eagle on the left is embroidered in the carmine red of the Schutzpolizei d. Gemeinden rather than the carmine pink of the Feuerwehr. Obviously the machine operator didn?t think it necessary to change the thread from a previous job when he produced this piece.

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[W.Unland]

Type 3A.

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This eagle differs from the previous example only in that its winglets curve upward, and reach all the way to the top of the wings (1) It still displays the ?pointed? head and other characteristics of the previous example and may represent the work of a different machine operator at the same producer.

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This pattern clearly seems to have been produced ?one off? by individuals rather than automated machines. Although clearly the same basic pattern, these two examples show slight variations in execution, including different beak shapes, body size, angle of legs and head shape.

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[W.Unland]

Type 3B.

This next eagle is a very close match to the preceding one. It too is a ?three ribbon? eagle, and is quite possibly by the same manufacturer as those above.

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The one characteristic that clearly separates it from the others though is the thinness of the wreath at the bottom where it is closed by the three ribbons. As can be seen in this photo it is quite a bit thinner than the eagle pattern above. The ?parrot-like? beak, quilted body, and winglets remain the same. It is quite possible that this type of eagle represents the work of yet another machine operator at the same firm that produced the other eagles in this ?family? of patterns.

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I have only seen this particular pattern on the two Schutzpolizei d. Gemeinden eagles shown here. It is unknown if this pattern was used for any other type of eagles. It may in fact be limited to one particular manufacturer?s run of carmine-red on green eagles, such as those shown here. These two eagles are essentially identical, but the minor variations in head and body shape suggest they were made by hand .

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[W.Unland]

Type4.

The next pattern to be considered is another, very different, ?three ribbon? style of eagle which is very common, and clearly not of the same family as those discussed above. That is the famously ugly ?big head? style shown here. Because of its non-symmetrical, totally unrealistic eagle it is easy to dismiss this eagle as a reproduction, but it is a known ?authentic? pattern seen in period photographs.

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This eagle pattern is quickly recognized and distinguished by the three parallel ribbons closing the wreath (1), the large square body with quilted chest (2), and the very large head with pronounced ridges around the eyes, and dots on the neck (3).

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This pattern seems to have been manufactured using automated equipment as all examples so far encountered have been identical, as shown here. I have yet to encounter any variations of this eagle, except for some showing different reverse characteristics suggesting different embroidery machines.

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All of the details in these three examples are identical in every way. In particular, note the ?flat? bottom of the wreath, the slight ?gaps? in the leaf embroidery, and the ?spots? on the neck, which would be impossible for a hand operator to reproduce. Clearly all of these were produced by the same manufacturer, on the same machine. This pattern of eagle has be observed in all of the various police branch colors.

I believe that this pattern may have been reproduced at some time in the past, but I have yet to determine specific criteria upon which to definitively identify an insignia as a reproduction.

[W.Unland]

Type 5.

The next eagle pattern to be considered is clearly related to the ?three ribbon? ANSBACH family of eagles discussed above. It shares many of the characteristics of those eagles but has one particularly obvious difference, i.e.; a crossed ribbon rather than three parallel ribbons at the bottom of the wreath.

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A closer examination shows that this eagle pattern is distinguished by the crossed ribbons at the bottom of the wreath (1), a peculiar parrot shaped head and beak (2), and oval body with quilted chest pattern (3), and a winglet pattern where all of the winglets curve downward, except the top three which are parallel to the large wing feathers (3).

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This eagle appears to have been made by hand and not through an automated process. As the three examples shown below demonstrate, no two of this pattern are exactly alike. Although clearly of the same pattern all three of these differ slightly as to body size, size and thickness of the crossed ribbons at the bottom, and the pattern of the leaves making up the wreath. In fact the orange example below appears to have a totally different type of leaf pattern than the other two. Obviously, different people made these three eagles from the same general pattern specifications.

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After an unknown period of production of the ?three ribbon? style of eagle, this presumed to be later type of eagle with ?crossed ribbons? at the bottom of the wreath became the standard design utilized by all manufacturers until the end of the war.

[W.Unland]

Type 6.

A very similar, but different, ?quilted chest, crossed ribbon? eagle is shown here. This pattern of eagle has only been seen in Feuerwehr eagles to date, although there is no reason to suspect that production was limited to that branch of the police.

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It is clearly differentiated from the above pattern by the very thin, flat bottomed wreath (1), the clearly visible ?gaps? in wreath where the legs meet it (2), the sharply angled winglets that point towards the body (3), as well as the smallish round head with tiny beak (4).

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As can be seen in this photo, all examples of this eagle pattern are essentially the same, and it must be presumed that they were produced using automated embroidery machines. It is interesting to note that the example in the middle has been embroidered in bright red rather than the correct carmine pink. This is another example of manufacturers using whatever was at hand rather than strictly adhering to the specifications when making these insignia.

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[W.Unland]

Type 7.

The next eagle pattern to be examined is a very commonly encountered one, and is the pattern shown in the photo of the manufacturer?s catalog shown at the beginning of this essay. It is of the ?crossed ribbons? variety, and was apparently produced by a large manufacturer with distribution throughout the Reich. Although the manufacturer is unknown, because a page from his product catalog showing this eagle has

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This eagle is distinguishable by the crossed ribbons at the bottom of the wreath (1), the ?flat? head with a pronounced ridge running along the top and back (2), the very angular downward shaped chest pattern on a long thin body (3), and wreath ends that touch at the top (4).

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This pattern of eagle is found in all branch colors and was extensively used. It appears to have been produced using automated embroidery machines as all examples are exactly alike. As shown below, there are no discernable variations between these three examples. They are exact copies of each other.

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Edited June 27, 2006 by W.Unland

[W.Unland]

Type 8.

The following pattern of police eagle is clearly one of the most handsome. Unlike many of the known patterns this one portrays a strong aggressive looking eagle. Unfortunately this particular eagle has been the subject of intense reproduction and extreme care must be taken when dealing with insignia of this type. Please see the section discussing forgeries and reproductions for more information.

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The characteristics of this pattern of eagle are the crossed ribbons at the bottom of the wreath (1), the relatively flat head with pronounced sharp angular beak, head ridge, ?spotted? neck, and triangular neck line (2), a thick chest with a rounded, downward curved, chest pattern (3), and wreath ends that overlap at the top. These are also characterized by their very ?thick? and almost three dimensional embroidery.

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These eagles were clearly produced on automated machines as all are identical, and details such as the ?dots? on the neck would be impossible for a hand machine operator to reproduce. This pattern is known in all branch colors, and was extensively used throughout the Reich. This photo shows how closely they match in pattern, and execution.

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As mentioned above this pattern has been extensively reproduced, and it?s reproductions are the most convincing of all on the market. Consequently extreme caution must be taken when examining this style of sleeve eagle. This will be discussed at some length in the later section of this essay dealing with reproductions and forgeries.

[W.Unland]

Type 9.

The next pattern of eagle is a commonly encountered type, thought to be of late war production as no ?named? examples have come to light. It is very similar to type 8 shown above, although it differs in some significant aspects.

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The basic characteristics of this eagle pattern include a very sharp beak and back sloped, minimally detailed head with a narrow ridge across the top and back (1), a thin body with distinctive down curving pattern lines (3), winglets that do not reach the top of the wing (2), and thin legs (4). The backward sloped head shape, different wreath details, as well as the lack of ?spots? and a ?V? shaped neck line differentiate this eagle from type 8, which it at first glance resembles.

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The examples of eagles assigned to this classification differ greatly from example to example. They share the general properties listed above, but all differ in detail and execution as shown here.

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Here is a side by side comparison between this eagle and the previous type, to help make the differences between the two more obvious. It is quite obvious that these two eagle patterns are related, and very similar, but still different. Note that the ribbons at the bottom of the wreaths cross in different directions, as well as the points mentioned above. It is possible that one firm utilized the pattern of another manufacturer upon which to base their own pattern of sleeve eagle. It will remain impossible to know the true relationship between these two designs.

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[W.Unland]

Type 10.

The next pattern to be examined is very commonly found in Feuerwehr eagles. To the casual observer, this pattern might appear to be a reproduction due to it?s loose weave and gaps in embroidery, however; it is in fact a legitimate pattern apparently produced extensively by an unknown, large manufacturer and distributed throughout the Reich.

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The characteristics of this eagle pattern are the crossed ribbons at the bottom of the wreath (1), the very noticeable ?loose? embroidery with gaps showing through the design (2), and the unique neck line incorporating the ridge running along the back of the head (3). The chest pattern, although not unique to this pattern, is also very clearly picked out. Although most common in Feuerwehr eagles, this pattern has been observed in all of the various police branch colors.

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It appears that this eagle was produced on automated pattern reading embroidery machines as all examples are exactly the same, allowing for minor variations due to the stretching of the background cloth during manufacture. This photo shows three examples from different branches of the police that are for all intents identical.

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[W.Unland]

Type 10A.

The eagle shown below is of the same pattern as those shown above, and was obviously manufactured by the same firm. It is different in that the eagle?s left wing extends below the level of the body, whereas on those shown above it does not. This ?error? has been observed on a number of this pattern of eagle, and is very common. It is unknown if this was due to ?slipping? of the cloth during manufacturing, or indicative of one particular machine operator?s work. Clearly the left wing appears to be ?wider? that the right.

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[W.Unland]

Type 11.

The pattern shown here is another that is most commonly seen in Feuerwehr eagles. It is not an attractive design, and looks nothing like an actual eagle but is none the less an original period produced pattern.

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It is readily identified by the large leaves making up the bottom of the wreath (1), the very rounded and pronounced chest (2), the thin hooked beak and oval head (3), and the pronounced rounded ?bulges? on the wings (4). The embroidery on these eagles is very thick, and tight, sometimes making the detail lines on the wreath and body hard to distinguish.

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These eagles are all very similar in appearance, although considerable differences in the shape of the head have been observed. In fact, it is hard to find any two of this pattern that have exactly the same head shape and size. They are similar, but different. All other details are exact. Notice the ?crooked? swastika on the two blue backed examples shown below. It is hard to explain the differences in head shape, other than to assume that at least that part of the design was rendered by hand without benefit of an automated pattern reading embroidery machine. Of course this might also be an artifact of the manufacturing process, i.e.; the material moving during the embroidery of this detail.

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[W.Unland]

Type 11A.

A variation of this pattern is shown here. It is similar in all aspects to those shown above except for the execution of the leaves making up the wreath. Although clearly manufactured by the same firm as the eagles shown above, this variation appears to have been made by a different machine operator. The existence of this variation suggests that this type of eagle was indeed produced ?one off?, and that perhaps different people were responsible for embroidering the eagle itself, and the wreath surrounding it.

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This side by side comparison makes the differences between the two variations of the same pattern more apparent. The second type has more ?lobed? leaves than those found on the original pattern type. This variation is not particularly rare, but less common than the first examples of this pattern shown above.

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[W.Unland]

Type 12.

This next eagle is seemingly related to the above type, in that they share a very similar design, particularly in the head and wings, although there are enough differences to classify it as a totally different type.

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As shown here, this eagle is characterized by the same flat head and hooked beak as the previous example (1), but differs in that the body is very short and squat, with ill defined details (2), and the inner winglets curve very strongly inward towards the body (3). The wreath is also much thinner than the above examples, particularly at the bottom.

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The two examples shown below share the basic squat body, flat head and hooked nose, but differ considerably in the details of the wreath. In fact, the ribbons at the bottom of the wreath cross in opposite directions. All that said though, I believe these are the product of the same manufacturer, but obviously by different machine operators.

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[W.Unland]

Type 12A.

This next eagle is clearly related to that shown above, but as is often the case shows some significant differences.

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This eagle is distinguished by a prominent ridge running across the top of a round head ending in a hooked beak (1), a rather short squat body similar to those above (2), and very distinct and clearly executed wreath leaf details exactly like that in the green example of type 11 (3).

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Strangely, all examples of this eagle so far encountered have been ?summer weight? herring bone twill examples as shown here. It is clear that these were manufactured by the same persons responsible for type 12. The squat body, slightly ?open? smaller wreath, winglet pattern, and wreath pattern are shared by that type and this sub-type. The differences in head shapes my represent the work of different machine operators, or may be due to the ?harder? and more stable HBT material that these eagles are embroidered on.

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[W.Unland]

Type 13.

The next pattern to be examined is considered a ?late war? pattern as it is always found without a district or city name, and it is always ?cut out? around the eagle and never embroidered on an oval backing as are all of the previous examples. This eagle is unique in its almost ?art deco? appearance.

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This type of eagle is easily distinguished by its very odd vertical orientation of all but the top two winglets (1), its narrow body with unique detail lines (2), and narrow, detail-less head (4). This particular example is even more unique in that it has five rather than the typical six wing feathers (3). This is one of only a very few such ?errors? found to date, but of original period production none the less. This particular eagle is embroidered on a gray background and it is assumed that it was for use by some branch of the ?Luftschutz? Air Raid Protection Service.

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Although all of these eagles appear almost identical, the ?error? noted above would suggest very strongly that this pattern of eagle was produced by hand ?one off?. The three examples shown here have minor detail differences in execution that support this contention. That said they are VERY close in appearance, and some sort of ?pattern assisted? embroidery cannot be ruled out. One theory is that these were ?chalked down? on the backing material using a cut out cardboard pattern that the machine operator followed when executing the eagle. Enlisted ranks six feathered eagle ?templates? made of thick paper have survived, and this is the only use for these that make any sense, as no enlisted eagle examined to date has been found to have a paper template under the embroidery, as officer?s hand embroidered eagles do.

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[W.Unland]

Type 14.

The next pattern of eagle is often found as Feuerwehr insignia, and as such is very common. It has also been seen in Schutzpolizei green, and it is assumed that it was manufactured in other colors as well.

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This type of eagle is characterized by a thick necked round head (1), rather square heavily quilted body (2), fat short legs (3), and relatively short wings and narrow oval background material (4).

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As the three examples shown here illustrate all of these eagles are similar but slightly different. It is consequently assumed that these were embroidered by hand. The center eagle is very interesting in that it is on a gray ?Luftwaffe? background material, and includes a black swastika, which is uncommon on fire service eagles. It is assumed that this is some sort of ?Luftschutzpolizei? insignia, although its exact use is unknown at this time.

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[W.Unland]

Type 14A.

This type of eagle is identical to the above listed example with the exception that the wing feathers are longer, and the oval on which they are embroidered is more rounded and similar to the other types examined.

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This side by side comparison clearly shows the longer wider wingspan. Obviously these two eagles were manufactured by the same firm, using the same basic pattern. It is thought that the longer wings were the result of one particular machine operator?s interpretation of the pattern, rather than the product of a different manufacturer.

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[W.Unland]

Type 15.

This next pattern of eagle is another often encountered in fire service insignia although there is evidence that it was produced for use by other branches as well.

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This pattern displays a very pronounced round eye ridge, and ridge along the back of the head (1), rather thick bottom wreath leaves (2), and prominent inward ?bumps? on the wings (3).

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As shown below, all examples of this eagle are all very similar but display differences in head shape, body thickness and length, as well as slight differences in wing configuration. Because of this it is thought that they were produced by hand machine operators following a general pattern.

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