Deutsche Christen Badge
Sold, and images from here.
I also have one of these, and until recently had it for sale on my site. The "had" part obviously steers you in the direction that i am going.
What are the opinions on this one? I couldnt find any Christian threads on the forum to see if they were ever discussed?
Two versions of the DC badge by Willi Merten. Both are different, thats easy to see, both obverse and reverse dies are completely different dies. But are both original? They are always sold as good, and to date not a bad word has been said. I dont think that both are original, and i have some pretty convincing evidence too.
Some pretty convincing reasons
Yes the dies are different, but then again, many makers would also have made, or had made, many dies, even 3 or more for the same badge, so that is no real reason to not like it.
Yes the typical fake black edging patina under the red, that is found on the 1933 ADOLF HITLER and 1933 DEUTSCHLAND ERWACHE badges is also present, but thats also no real reason is it.
In-hand both badges look the same, show the same initial surface wear.. both look like they have been there are done it.
Both are also found for sale on a regular basis, but all manner of dealers. (Although i dont class myself as a dealer, i have also had BOTH versions listed for sale at various times, and indeed even SOLD one of these - which i am now calling fake - badges - so there you go.)
The complete micro- analysis would consume too much space, and at the end of the day, it is probably the best thing to just shut up, and dont mention that there are problems with them. After all, everyone sells them as good, and i have never seen any "problems" or questions raised with these. (It would also save me from having to give someone a refund - if i remember, i sold one a few years ago for U$D 125.-A freaky load of dollahs right there, that i may now have to refund....
Here are a few micro-images taken of the same aspects, from both badges. I covered this kind of micro-research in my book on pages 381-427, and 445-483, so i wont bother repeating whats already been written.
The images with a white border are taken from the light red MERTEN badge with thin-lined makers name.
The images with a red border are taken from the dark red MERTEN badge with fat makers name.
__________________________________________________ ____________________________
Outer rim patina.
Which badge is typical messing? showing typical forensic signs of every day usage?
Outer rim patina - protruding edges
Seeing as each badge has 4 points that stick out, we can logically assume that any wear and tear, and handling, will first be visible on these edges.
(Left image is the light red MERTEN, right image is the dark red, fat MERTEN)
Inner boundaries patina
Which images look like what we hope to see under magnification? correct - or typical, normal -construction and patina, opposed to a post war mess?
Surface wear - and general construction
The letters "D" in DEUTSCHE taken from both badges.
Die construction
We know how dies were made, and we know how they were engraved by hand after the innitial design was transferred/engraved.
On the light red MERTEN, we see what we should, typical TR tooling was used, looks fine.
On the dark red fat MERTEN, we see what can only be described as flat, Hockey-puck shaped dots.
An interesting analysis of the construction of these badges. quite educational.
BOB
LIFE'S LOSERS NEVER LEARN FROM THE ERROR OF THEIR WAYS.
I should have seen the differences, but never looked because i always assumed that they were good, as i image did everyone else. It`s only 20mm, so i guess you cant see much with the eye at first glance.
Never seen this badge before so i can't be of any help here. I must admit that your skills in photography and photo editing are remarkable. Thanks for posting.
Looking for the photo albums of Leutnant Emil Freitag, 3. / G.R. 377
I also have never seen this badge and I also applaud you on your advanced photo skills.by don_kihotis7
Glad to have your wisdom with us Jo.
Eric
[h=3]e plu·ri·bus u·num[/h]
Cheers
It is a method i applied heavily in my book, to get away from the usual way of just showing an image accompanied by my 5 cents. I needed it as well to unmask tricky fakes.
The Red M1/35 badge shown in this post, is actually now with me, and instead of me just saying, that i believe these series are spray painted, hence the perfect colors, when i use detailed images, you can actually see, quite clearly that it is indeed spray paintedand not hand painted with enamel paint.
So logically, all i really need to do here, is pose the question to anyone who believes they are genuine, to show me detailed images, the same as these below, of an accepted original painted TR badge, that is spray painted instead of hand painted. The bonus being that the actual images are doing the talking, without any personal opinion being added.
The next bonus is that anyone can do it, no need to rely on specific individuals. We cannot fake what we see at high magnification, and we cannot adapt the results to fit our way of thinking. If you understand what you are seeing, it becomes an incredibly powerful tool.
Your photos are fantastic Jo!
Sweet as mate, although i want to upgrade to a 3D microscope.
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