Farkas

i’ve just spotted this 👇 it’s described as likely coming off a train, an old steam engine I presume from the date… Nowhere near as sharp looking as yours but the similarities make it worth a mention. cheers tony 🍻

It’s such a shame that when we find something & are happy to pay the price, we still can’t be confident in our purchase. Now that even the experienced collectors have different opinions, what hope is there. As Graf says, the fakers keep improving. It seems the tells that people used to rely on are close to gone. Some when copied were an incorrect weight but now that’s no longer reliable. Some had a particular detail or design that was once beyond copying well but now easily done. There is currently a UK firm hand making old British uniforms, supposedly for tv/theatre but there are a good dozen of their copies for sale as original on eBay. For now at least, luckily, there is still one sometimes two ways i spot them, which I won’t mention here. & Personally, I sadly no longer buy postcards, I found a couple of fakes in my collection and that ended it for me, there and then. Printers now are just too good. 👆 In most scenarios the best action is to walk away and find another example that hopefully receives universal approval but… as in this case where there is little availability it is easier said than done. cheers tony 🍻

Hello Gents, this is a bit of an unusual buy for me. I’ve picked up this job lot from a house clearance. I assume the seller would have at least googled what he had, based on that I’m not expecting the third reich items to be original but hopeful they may have a little age to them. This is how it looks… There were a couple of reasons I was interested. - The party medals and badges seem like they could complement each other, worn together rather than just randoms. - The cockade with the iron cross centre is, I believe, a veteran association piece. An unlikely choice for re-enactments. - I really want to know what is underneath the Brit ww2 defence medal ribbon! Also for sale was this 1936 ‘family tree’ for this man 👇 From the parents names I think it is ‘Josef Paula’. Could there be a connection? and a couple of other post war German items. As I said , all items from a house clearance dealer not a militaria dealer. So Gents, I’m hoping 🤞 the awards turn out to be interesting copies with a bit of age that were maybe worn by a veteran post war at association meetings. The runes, deaths head and eagle sleeve(?) patch are also, I have to presume, copies. Where they would fit into my imagined narrative, I don’t know… 😊 As soon as I receive them I will post pictures of the various bits and bobs As always, all thoughts or opinions welcome Gents… & as the whole lot cost me just £40 there’s no need to spare my feelings! Cheers tony 🍻

thank you both for your help 👍 I just checked what price it went for… someone got it for £10. Wsh I’d had a little punt at that price. Cheers tony 🍻

Thanks Eric 👍👍

The ones i’ve seen described as dating to ww2 had that same Regent Street B’ham makers mark. Fattorini relocated to the Regent Street factory in 1927, I think that is leading to the assumption of ww2 for those particular badges. As you say though there are clear references to much earlier items both generally and by Fattorini in particular. This different organisation dates from WW1... This link unfortunately leads nowhere but it states 1850 so lots of history still to uncover... tony 🍻

Hello Enzo, as a man who still can’t tell an original ribbon from a modern one i find myself continuously in awe of your knowledge... tony 🍻

This may be him Chris... Heinrich Rosenberg, Luftwaffe JG27 https://www.directart.co.uk/mall/aces.php?PilotID=1670 tony 🍻

I’ve got a dozen Guards tunics, i’m only missing a Coldstream one...but i do have 2 Battledress to compensate, this is one of them... It belonged to Brigadier Robert Charles Windsor-Clive, served with 2CG in ww2 and later C.O. of 3CG circa 1960, he is probably a bit before your time but may be familiar. By the way, i’ve just seen that https://www.austro-hungarian-army.co.uk is yours... it’s a great piece of work, thanks for making it 👍👍 Best wishes, tony 🍻 PS. You may have noticed i don’t need much of an excuse to post pics of my stuff... 😊

Hi Gents, I found this described as ‘unknown medal’, i’m pretty sure at the time i found another example but right now I don’t know what it is... any ideas Gents? I believe it commemorates the unveiling of a statue to Feldmarschall Radetzky v. Radetz, in 1892, in Vienna, on the reverse. He lived from 1766 to 1858 which is remembered on the front along with his image. I have found other commemorative medallions for him in bronze with different designs. But I cannot find this design or the ribbon. The medal has an ‘A’ stamped on the collar, it’s hard to see and even harder to get in a photo but it doesn’t seem to be set in a circle which i’m used to seeing for Vienna assay office and it doesn’t feel like silver, i think it’s more like lead. I bought it together with a Karl Kreuz for just 26 quid so it only cost me a fiver or so. If it wasn’t for the ribbon I wouldn’t have looked too close but it seems somebody wore this, the medal is sown to the fitting. Does anybody have any knowledge of this? Any comments welcome 👍 cheers tony 🍻

Hi Bill, just a little more... This is the Officer pattern in 1900 tony 🍻

Ain’t there always 😊

Yes interesting isn’t it, they wrote a good article. I knew people did it but I didn’t know it was ever an organised effort. I was totally unaware of the scheme. Some other interesting badges including one of these (warning Gordon : still for sale 😃) if you really want to tease yourself 👇 https://www.sallybosleysbadgeshop.com/shop.php?c=506 tony 🍻

Lovely to see.. 🍻

There is a really informative piece on this pinterest page.. https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/14566398782740399/ I also found reference to the scheme starting in 1850 with volounteers sought and patterns being distributed at various times including campaigns run during Ww1 & Ww2. The badges i found looking like this are being described as WW2. As Terry says, the back may hold the answer particularly if there is a makers mark. Cheers tony 🍻

💪💪🍻🍻 I know it still doesn’t answer your original question but i hope you might enjoy seeing these other examples i have... you never know, you may even recognise the names! SGT Welsh Guards & In Silver. SGT Honourable Artillery Company Cheers tony 🍻

I dont have an officers tunic but i have this Warrant Officers one, Welsh guards bandsman. This is from the 90’s I’d guess... tony 🍻

Me too.. 🍻

Yes, i agree, i see what appears to be a line coming in from the left centre. 🍻

It’s already got me inspired to try! 😊 🍻

You’re welcome my friend 🍻🍻

Hello Gents, This one below is actually just a little snapshot... This one below is a CDV a little bigget than a postcard in size, i’ve added a picture of the reverse as it has a newspaper cutting glued to it... tony 🍻

Yes looks very nice Greg. Good looking ribbon too 👍👍 tony 🍻

Hello Stefan, i’ve no expertise in it, but that is a lovely looking piece in my opinion, looks to be in great condition. The only things i know to look for in ribbons is for the loops at the end of the rows, which yours has... and i check it with ultraviolet too. So, again, just in my amateur opinion, i like the look of it, the hallmark looks good and the ribbon does too, That probably doesn’t add much to inform your opinion but.. I did find this which i think relates to the hallmark stamps on yours. I look forward to hearing to hearing the experts opinions 👍 cheers tony 🍻

My gut feeling is also Russian or maybe French? I don’t think British or Prussian but I can’t justify my feeling. There are so many generic modern items its hard to find good period examples (labelled) using google and I didn’t see a match on any illustrations i found. The first one is unusual and the second one is odd too , to my British eye anyway 😊... though i guess even reproductions are likely based on something. Its gonna be tough without a proper nose in the flesh 🤷‍♂️ May i ask are you considering buying them or just curious? They are good looking things but a gamble if priced as ‘real’. Hopefully my ignorance will trigger a more knowledgeable gent to help us out 🤞 tony. 🍻