Ski jager cap badges - whats the story?

[Adrian Stevenson]

Hi Dan, no, here you go.

Cheers, Ade.

[Glenn66]

Sure does make a nice, shiny point for a sniper to draw a bead on.

[Wolf]

Hello everyone,

I know the thread is already older, but since I recently stumbled across a Skijäger badge myself and there doesn't seem to be anything new on this interesting topic so far, I thought I'd revive the topic again.

During my research I was able to find a total of 5 original pictures of soldiers with Skijäger badges, the first four of which come from the German Federal Archives (Unfortunately, I could not assign any source to the close-up of the badge, which was also posted here before).






(source: German Federal Archives)



(source: unknown)

Unfortunately, the resolution of the images is not good enough for the details to be recognizable. If anyone has technical knowledge that can help with this, any help is greatly appreciated.


Since there is a very wide variety of badges offered, I first took a closer look at the original pictures. It is noticeable that in the picture with two soldiers next to each other, the skijäger badges are not identical. The front badge has a uniform color scheme, while the rear has light oak leaves and darker skis. Also, the angle of the skis differs between the two badges (the rear badge has a much flatter angle at which the skis cross the oak leaves).

This would speak for the thesis that the badges were at least partly self-made (probably using Jäger badges).

When looking at the close-up of the badge (unknown source) it is noticeable that the design of the skis does not correspond to any of the common badges. During my search, however, I was able to discover pictures of a badge that was sold on "Weitze.net" a few years ago and shows identical skis. This was referred to by the dealer as "front production".






(source: Weitze.net)


In the next step, I looked at various badges on the Internet and tried to classify them into obvious fakes and possibly real badges. These will be posted below.

I'm curious about your opinions and hope for a lively discussion, so that we can get to the bottom of this riddle of collecting militaria together.

Every contribution is appreciated.

Best regards
Wolf

[Wolf]

For reference, here are some of the badges that I've judged to be obvious fakes (If I don't write a reason for a badge, the reason I suspect it's a fake is because of the quality, the retailer who sells it, and the price at which it's sold. If you want to make sure, you will find the corresponding source under the pictures.).




(source: Gielsmilitaria.com)

This badge seems suspect to me, since it is plastically worked outwards on both sides. So far I have never come across a cap badge that was worked like this on both sides. This also makes no sense since the back always faces the cap.




(source: Sixtharmygroup.com)

For me, this badge is to be classified as a fake due to its unusually poor workmanship.




(source: Militarytour.com)





(source: Sofmilitary.co.uk)




(source: Spree-Militaria.de)





(source: theregaliaspecialist.com)









(source: Warhats.com)

[Wolf]

I discovered an unusual piece here, as it is the only specimen that I have seen with the inscription "GES GESCH" on the back. But I would classify it as questionable.





(source: wwiidaggers.com)

[Wolf]

Finally, here is a variant that is considered genuine by (in my opinion) trustworthy dealers.






However, there is no proof of authenticity here either.


In general, all the information here is my personal conclusions, so of course there is no guarantee.

[bleiburg1945]

Here is a 100% ORIGINAL ski hunter badge that I found in the ground over 40 years ago, which confirms the theory that badges were at least partially self-made using Jäger badges (front production).
This archaeological find is undoubtedly a contemporary, worn piece of “front production”.Attachment 1676212Attachment 1676211

[bleiburg1945]

pics

[bleiburg1945]

Attachment 1676213Attachment 1676214

[Danmark]

Attachment 1676213Attachment 1676214

This is the "as found" image?