VtwinVince

Very nice Steckkreuz. I'm still kicking myself that I missed Bronsart von Schellendorf's cross without swords some years ago.

Nice one, these are not so common. Of course it has an extra suspension loop.

Cool, unusual Schnalle for sure.

LOL, it's amazing what suckers will pay on fleabay.

I've never seen an original example with the loops on the back, although I'm sure Christian has confidence in it.

It's an interesting piece, wonder what sort of provenance it has?

Tarnished? That's the understatement of the century. As an avid road cyclist, I never believed all the hype surrounding this guy, and when you research the scale of the conspiracy surrounding his 'achievements' you get pretty cynical about the state of this sport.

I don't collect minis, but here are my nicest examples, a pretty rare VKmdK, and a Kette which belonged to Rittmeister Roger von Boch of Villaroy&Boch fame.

Thanks, need to get some new eyeglasses!

Wow, that is quite the Frackschnalle. Interesting that he got the NC EK but the KDM is for combat.

German and English titles are not directly comparable. Consider the titles Freiherr, Reichsfreiherr and Baron, all used coincidentally in Germany.

I'm glad you chimed in, Wild Card. I have a couple of Brunswick Waterloo medals, and based on their condition I was sceptical as to authenticity, but apparently they were commonly dug out of graveyards where they were buried along with the recipient, and both of mine have what looks like damage from a shovel! Pretty ghoulish stuff.

Nice old-timer, and I think you've got the right one on there.

There is a guy in Germany who constantly lists blatant Imperial fakes on US ebay, and they appear to sell all the time. Drives me nuts.

Given the circumstances of this auction, I would say very likely all are from the same individual. From my own personal experience, my uncle had multiple examples of his badges for wear on several uniforms. Too bad about the third badge getting away, it is a rare variant. In any event, a great pair.