Eric Stahlhut

the overall quality of the medal is poor, especially for an 'austrian' item

if it is indeed of cuban manufacture, it would have to have been produced sometime between 1952 and 1959, as this order was introduced in 1952 to replace the honor badge for merit type 1.

no real story, it's merely an EK1 that has had the pin and catch removed so that the cross could be sewn flush onto a tunic or coat; sometimes individuals would do this so that the cross would not snag on something and get ripped off. pilots were known to have done this due to the close confines of a cockpit. the obverse on this cross shows a lot of exposure to the elements.

oh wow, mystery solved!!! thank you very much for the info, seeheld!

true dat, but the thingy doesn't seem 'kitschy' enough for a rah rah patriotic item. it's almost like the loop on top was meant to be inserted into something so it doesn't flop forward. it's a substantial hunka bronze....and i found a link to this corps/club but didn't want to steal/post pics without permission.

yeah it's nice...but i'm curious as to whether or not this is a D.F.A.C. badge. sure looks like a distinct possibility!

it's a very hefty and well-made pin. fired gilt

i've never been able to figure out the exact background of the item attached to this bar. at first i thought navy; then freikorps--but no exact match was found. then i read the thread on this forum about the Imperial Automobil Corps. any opinions? anyone super-knowledgeable about this organization's insignia and internal awards? p.s. the green you see is a reflection from book spine--not verdigris--must stop using this dang book as tripod!!

Wooohoooo! yep, it's a 'filial' cross. think about all of those patriotic postcards with the banners and streamers and EKs dangling. think about all those parade photos of not only during the war, but also the ones of the vet vereins in the 20s and 30s.. these are hard to find

nope--entirely wrong direction, Joel 'nother hint: this was modified by Wagner themselves...

hint: greg guess was 'warm'

nope!

nope, good guess--but that's not it! it's regular size.

does anyone understand why i like it so much?

a few more. top is silvered brass, bottom is .925

1 "propeller-clasp" w/ incused moon, crown, 800 on reverse-- geschutzt, etc. on attachment device

my ex-wife's family had/has one of these. they are relatives of Ernst Lehmann. i saw it in a family picture taken at her grandmother's house; it was sitting in the background on the fireplace mantle. i asked my wife about it and she pretty much described is as one of these pokals.at the time i had no idea this type existed and i remember commenting to her on how much it looked like an aviator's award. she mentioned it had the word 'thor' on it and i figured it was something else. she used to get yelled at by her grandmother if she got too close to it. i did on several occaisions get to go through the family foto album and it was amazing. there were a lot of freikorps pics in there too. just please don't ask me if i can get any more info on it...

am trying to find out who won this. one 'famous' possibility is otto peltzer, who was later arrested by the gestapo in 1941 and then rescued by the americans in 1945. or-as the bow suggests, it could been awarded to a female athlete. apparently this year was a big one for the germans in the international sports scene.