Original German WWII Army Heer Steel Belt Buckle by Dr. Franke with Black Wound Badge by Eduard Hahn Original Items

Original Item: Only One Set Available. This is a very nice WWII German Wehrmacht Heer (Army) Bring back set, consisting of a Steel belt buckle and a very nice wound badge in Black.

The first item in the set is a nice EM/NCO’s Steel Belt Buckle (Koppelschloß). The buckle is embossed with the Heer motto GOT MIT UNS (“God with us”) surrounding a NSDAP Party Eagle. Nice fieldgrey painted steel construction box buckle with a smooth background. The buckle is in good condition, with much of the original paint intact, and the expected wear from service. There is some light oxidation where the paint is missing. The inside of the buckle is also marked Dr. F. & Co. / 1940 for Dr. Franke & Co., located in of Lüdenscheid, a city with a large garment accessories industry.

The buckle still still retains the leather tab, which is is very faintly marked, but based on the maker, we know that originally it read:

DR. FRANKE & CO. K
1940
LÜDENSCHEID

The leather of the tab is in quite nice shape, with fully intact stitching. It is somewhat stiff, as leather usually is after 80 years.

The 1st Grade Wound Badge in Black (Verwundetenabzeichen im Schwarz) is in excellent condition, with almost all of the original black paint present. It is the desirable steel “hollow back” type, and is maker marked on the back with E H as well as 126, for maker Eduard Hahn of Oberstein/Nahe. This maker marked both their initials and the with Präsidialkanzlei des Führers Lieferant (Presidential Chancellery Supplier) number, so this is completely correct.

A very nice bring back set from WWII, a perfect way to start a German WWII collection!

The German Wound Badge (Verwundetenabzeichen) was instituted during the First World War to recognize those wounded in the conflict. It was designed using a World War One style Imperial German helmet as the main motif. The helmet was set on top two crossed swords against a pebbled background and surrounded by a laurel leaves wreath.

During the Spanish Civil War the Third Reich reinstated the Wound Badge for a short period to honor those who were wounded during the conflict from 1936 to 1939. These German units participating in the assistance of the Spanish Fascists were deemed the “Condor Legion”. The pattern of the World War One Wound Badge was again used, except this time with a raised swas on the center of the World War One era helmet.

At the outbreak of war in September 1939 with Poland, Adolf AH once again reinstated the Wound Badge Award. Again the pattern of the badge was similar to that of the earlier style except the new design was freshened up a bit by using an M35 pattern German helmet and a slightly softer looking wreath. This pattern was used until the end of the war in 1945. It is impossible to know the exact numbers of wound badges awarded during the course of the Second World War due to the vast scale and countless individuals who were wounded or killed in the conflict.

The Wound Badge Awards came in three different types of grades representing the amount , or severity, of wounds received. The first grade, the Black Wound Badge was awarded for 1 to 2 wounds received in combat. The Silver Grade was awarded for 3 to 4 wounds, and finally the Gold Grade for 5 or more wounds, total disability, or death.