Ozbrit

Hi guys, thanks for the info. I did end up keeping the medal, mainly because I forgot to return it before the window of opportunity closed. I'm pretty sure this is a post war Frankenstein/fake. Most likely scenario, in my opinion, is that the frame is a leftover from the era and the core was stamped out of two mis-matched, worn out dies. The obverse die just being plain worn out. I think the reverse die was cracked but they continued to use it, resulting in the misaligned, chopped up 1813. The ring requires no comment. Either way it's an interesting piece, I don't mind owning it. It's taught me a fair bit in the quest to authenticate or disprove it. The bigger lesson though, is to look before I leap, ha ha ha. As this was never awarded to a member of the Wehrmacht, I have decided to award it to myself as a cross of foolishness. It will hopefully, in future, remind me not to ignore red flags.

Hi all. I've been lurking for a while and have now joined up. So let me start with the standard beginners question. Is my Iron Cross legit? It is of 3 piece construction with a magnetic core. The core doesn't rattle, but I can fit the corner of a piece of paper between the frame and core. There is no makers mark, the ring is soldered. There is a neat join down the edge of the frame. It is 43.5mm wide. The black finish looks matte in real life. I have added scans, daylight photos and cheap desktop microscope photos to try and cover all bases. What do you guys think? I have the opportunity to plead my case with the seller. He's a legit dealer that has been in business for decades, some people don't like him though. There are things that worry me, but I don't want to pre-empt. All opinions appreciated.