Scowen

Thanks Paul, indeed they are & were rare at the time. For example, the Rhineland cross above is known to have only been awarded 84 times....... Of course, as with any award more were made than awarded. Cheers Don

A different angle

Here's another. The Baden 25yr Service bar or spange with it's case. Cheers Don

Marcus, I didn't realise that the difference between these two wasn't widely known. Do you have images of the other variations including the packet? If so perhaps you would be kind enough to post them here as it could be a nice addition to the thread. Cheers Don

That sure is a beauty John, congratulations mate. Cheers Don

Sorry, can't help I'm afraid. Cloth is totally out of my area to start with, let alone something so specialised Hope some one can help you. Cheers Don

reverse

Here it is.

And the same to you Robin, it's down hill to summer now Cheers Don

I'm afraid not. I've seen a similar one with just the "M" with a simple rope style twist around the edge, but not with the "S" & the leaves. What is wriiten on the pin plate, I can't read it with the glare? Cheers Don

What a find Thanks for the link Robin Cheers Don

Don't apologise, that's what the forum's for Cheers Don

It's for the 25 year Service Award. Here's mine. You get very slight variations in the design of the cog, but it's for the same award. Cheers Don

Nice find, the reverse is very nicely marked, well done. Cheers Don

And very nice it is too Cheers Don

That's good news Anna-Catherine so you the system to start with, I too have spent many a long hour in dusty archives on family history (but in the UK). I have found the name of the chap who helped me, I will PM you his name so as not to publish it for all to abuse. The last thing he will want (if he is still there) is a load of people going directly to him To prevent any confusion here, I just thought I'd add that the pin Darrell posted is for the Dutch version of the organisation. In this case the BL stands for "Begunstigende Leden" translated roughly as favouring members. Cheers Don

Yes the Berlin Documents Centre is open to the public for research. However, before you try them you could try your National Archives and Records Administration, as they have microfilmed copies of a lot of the German records. Here is the web address that pertains to the captured German documents http://www.archives.gov/research/captured-german-records/ I have found them helpful in the past when I was hunting the service record of an SS NCO who's helmet I now own, so I know how you feel about finding so more info. I forget the name of the chap who helped me (I'll see if I have it written down somewhere) but he certainly knew his stuff. If they haven't any info then you will have to try Berlin. Let me have a look around my junk to see if I still have the guy's name, I remember he was also a Don...... Cheers Don

Although I agree with Robin's assessment re value, I think if you are going to insure it I would aim higher. One of these is currently on sale from a dealer in Europe for 400 Euros which is around $470 US & I doubt that it will remain on sale for long. Cheers Don

The final page worth showing. Here are his monthly contribution stamps, these pages showing his payments from 1933 to 1940. I hope this has given you some answers & a little history behind your lovely broach. Please do not hesitate to ask any further questions. Cheers Don

I won't show all the pages as most are just official rules etc. However this page shows the name of the owner, the shaded area to the top right is the members number & the shaded area to the bottom is the amount to be paid monthy. In this case RM 5.

The first page showing the name of the organisation & it's link with the SchutzStaffeln (SS).

Thank you for posting the additional image, as I expected, a very nice original! Unfortunately, I do not know of any lists of members, I imagine that they may well exist somewhere in the Berlin archives & just haven't been researched yet. I imagine that these pins & broaches may indeed have been quite common during the period of the Reich, although it is rare to see them being worn in photographs. Today they are scarce, probably due to them being disposed of because the fear of being caught with anything SS related at the end of the war. Incidentally, it may interest you to know that the broach form is rarer than the stickpin for some reason. I thought you might like to see some images from a dues book. The first is just the cover showing the symbol. Cheers Don

Welcome to the forum Anna-Catherine. What you have there is a membership badge of the SS/FM (F?rderndes Mitglied, or sponsoring member in English). The FM Organization was formed in 1929 & composed of civilians who gave monetary aid to the SS, which had been authorized by Hitler to seek additional financial help. The FM Members donated monthly amounts which started from as little at RM 1,00. A membership book which was numbered to an FM badge was also issued along with the badge. The badge came in broach form (as you have here) or with a stickpin & should be numbered & maker marked to the reverse. From what I see so far, it looks like you have a nice original, but please do post a picture of the reverse, so as to be sure. In the meantime, here is a link that shows both the membership pin & honour pin from this organisation http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=474 . Cheers Don

Man that's sweet I think that industrial long service awards are very underated. Well done, & thanks for showing us. Cheers Don