"Cone"-Style Zimmerman Skulls

[daveward]

I wanted to share some information on Zimmerman skulls that I have gleaned from comments made by individuals more knowledgeable in the field of skull authentication than I am... While the majority of 499/41 skulls have the characteristic "mashed in" prong attachment points on the backside, there are late war variants that have "cone" attachment points. If you find yourself examining one of these "cone"-style Zimmerman skulls to determine if you should buy it, there are a few things you should know!

The first tip should be obvious to most people familiar with these skulls: authentic Zimmerman skulls do not have round pins! Here's a picture of a round-pinned "cone"-style fake:



Here's one that appears to have common nails used for pins:



The next thing is much more subtle... We're used to seeing flat prongs on other skulls that seem to be cut along the diagonal, where the point is on one side of the prong. Think of the pins on a Deschler M1/52 skull, or on a normal Zimmerman skull... The important thing to remember is that the "cone"-style Zimmerman skulls do not have this type of prong. Authentic "cone"-style Zimmerman skulls have a shorter prong that is tapered on both sides, so that the point is in the middle. Here's an example of a fake:



Compare that with these authentic "cone"-style Zimmerman skulls:





Based on what I've seen, the most convincing Zimmerman fakes are the "cone" types. They often look pretty good from the front, so watch out! It should be noted that there are "cone"-style fakes out there that even seem to have the proper pin style... This skull was shown on another site as an example of a fake that has fooled a lot of knowledgeable collectors:



I think the flaw that gives this one away is the fact that the "4"s in the maker's mark are open, rather than closed, as they are on authentic pieces.

Anyway, I just wanted to share this information with the group, as it might prove beneficial to some of you. If it were up to me, I'd simply stay away from the "cone" types altogether, as some of the fakes are very convincing, in my opinion. That's not to say that there aren't some nice, authentic "cone"-style Zimmerman skulls out there to be had, like those pictured above. As always, study these items closely and ask for help if you are even the least bit unsure! I hope this helps!