Iron Roland

[Eric Stahlhut]

or a post WW2 version?

most of these are encountered in iron or zinc. here's one that is made of bronze. the blackened finish is nearly gone. the badge is well struck and the details are exceptional--much better than the zinc and most of the iron examples. i must say that i am intrigued by this one..

46x31mm.

Edited September 23, 2008 by Eric Stahlhut

[Eric Stahlhut]

another angle

[Eric Stahlhut]

[Eric Stahlhut]

the setup on the reverse is interesting

[Eric Stahlhut]

one plausible theory i have is it that it could have been constructed of bronze with the idea it was to be worn by naval awardees.

?

[Guest Rick Research]

If it's bronze what's all that horrid scruffy rusty looking stuff?

Steinhauer & L?ck were selling these in January 1939, so I suppose somebody was an after market. I haven't seen one to handle in decades, and mine is a marked 1919 issue, so no further clue. :(

[Eric Stahlhut]

If it's bronze what's all that horrid scruffy rusty looking stuff?

looks to be a remnant of some type of ferrous finish.

first thing i did was to slap a magnet on the badge, but no go.

base material is definitely choco-bronze.

Edited September 23, 2008 by Eric Stahlhut

[Guest Rick Research]

Very strange. I wish I knew what the back of an S&L one looked like... but the pin system on yours doesn't match any of their other identifiable 1930s pieces.

[dond]

If the theory is that bronze was for navy guys then the ferrous finish theory s a no go. If you go to all the trouble making a badge that won't rust then why put a rusting finish on it?

[Eric Stahlhut]

If the theory is that bronze was for navy guys then the ferrous finish theory s a no go. If you go to all the trouble making a badge that won't rust then why put a rusting finish on it?

thanks for bringing that point up, don. shortly after typing that comment i realized my lapse in logic, so last night i took a much closer look at the reddish spot in question. it was in fact a thin old patch of adhesive (price tag) that had turned a crusty black and red--prolly from interacting with the metal.

it came right off with a little water and a razor blade!

it also appears as if this badge may originally have had a pin attached by a plate that was centered in the middle of the planchet.

perhaps it originally had one of those super-sized safety pins instead of what is on it now?

[Eric Stahlhut]

i did a little bit of gentle scrubbing with a q-tip and water; there is a rectangular depression in the center. the gunk is quite hardened. there also seems to be a horizontal shadow/difference in toning from where something may have been affixed.

?!?

[Mike K]

I'm probably going against the trend here, but for me the hardware appears post-45 - something I'd expect to see on a 57er, not something out of the latest teens/20s.

Regards

Mike

[Eric Stahlhut]

i'm not ruling out any possibilities on this one; in fact that was my first impression as well. i can't find any reference that mentions these awards being made post ww2, tho.

it's a curious piece!