Kriegsmarine Genuine SCHARNHORST cap tally

[Heggie]

I have recently inherited some items from my great uncle who was a merchant sailor during WW2. His ship (MV Athelfoam) was sunk by the Scharnhorst and he became a POW. I have his discharge book (interestingly marked "Discharged at Sea"), photos of the POWs on the deck of the Scharnhorst and of his ship being sunk and an original, mint condition Scharnhorst cap tally (given to him by one of the sailors onboard). I am not intending to part with these items but would welcome any advice as to their value so that I can arrange insurance if necessary (assuming they are worth anything at all!). Thanks, Chris

[Gordon Williamson]

Dealer price for a mint Scharnhorst is around £250 (Helmut Weitze has a mint one on sale at €300).

They can sometimes be had cheaper on places like EBay where I have seen them going for around £100 but for insurance valuation I'd go for the mainstream dealer price at £250.

[Heggie]

Dealer price for a mint Scharnhorst is around £250 (Helmut Weitze has a mint one on sale at €300).

They can sometimes be had cheaper on places like EBay where I have seen them going for around £100 but for insurance valuation I'd go for the mainstream dealer price at £250.

Many thanks

[Peter BL]

Many thanks

Any chance of seeing some pics of the group.

Cheers..Peter

[John R]

Most, I would say 90%, of the ebay Scharnhorst tallies are fakes from the HMS Belfast gift store sold there many years ago. Easy to spot, uneven ends. The rule with this particular cap tally is if it is cut to equal lenghts down to the letters, it is a fake. If it has uneven ends, it is a fake. The tally needs to be 110 cms or greater with even ends.

I agree with Gordon on the valuation. However in this case, I would bump it up to 300 euros due to the provenance.

John