Original German WWII Cased War Merit Cross 1st Class KvKI with Swords by Gottlieb & Wagner – Kriegsverdienstkreuz Original Items

Original Items: Only One Available. This is a very nice cased example of a War Merit Cross KvK 1st Class in Silver with swords, manufactured by Gottlieb & Wagner of Idar-Oberstein a.d. Nahe, a very rare maker that we have only seen once before. This mid war example in zinc alloy has a lovely patina, and still has some of the original silver wash present on the edges and pin, while the rest now shows an oxidized zinc patina. There are sharp details to contours and pebbles to internal cross arms.

The badge features an intact pinback and is maker stamped as issued with Präsidialkanzlei des Führers Lieferant (Presidential Chancellery Supplier) number 52 on the underside of the pin, which represents Gottlieb & Wagner. The badge is totally non magnetic, with an alloy pin attached to a case in hinge, which is secured on the other end by a cast catch. This is a lovely patinated example of a KVK 1st Class!

This KVK comes in an original correct leatherette covered case, showing a worn facsimile of the cross with swords on case lid. The case has a nice interior, with a worn black velvet plush material bottom with inlet, and a nice satin top. The case has a metal hinge on the rear, which is in good shape, and a working catch on the front.

A very nice cased example of this award, ready to display!

The War Merit Cross (Kriegsverdienstkreuz) was a decoration of NSDAP Germany during the Second World War, which could be awarded to military personnel and civilians alike. By the end of the war it was issued in four degrees, and had a related civil decoration. It was created by Adolf AH in October 1939 as a successor to the non-combatant Iron Cross which was used in earlier wars. The award was graded the same as the Iron Cross: War Merit Cross Second Class, War Merit Cross First Class, and Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross. The award had two variants: with swords given to soldiers for exceptional service “not in direct connection with combat”, and without swords for meritorious service to civilians in “furtherance of the war effort”. As with the Iron Cross, Recipients had to have the lower grade of the award before getting the next level.

The ribbon of the War Merit Cross was in red-white-black-white-red; that was, the red and black colors being reversed from the ribbon of the World War II version of the Iron Cross. The ribbon for the War Merit Medal was similar, but with a narrow red vertical red strip in the center of the black field. Soldiers who earned the War Merit Cross 2nd Class with Swords wore a small crossed-swords device on the ribbon. The War Merit Cross 1st Class was a pin-backed medal worn on the pocket of the tunic (like the Iron Cross 1st Class). The ribbon of the War Merit Cross 2nd Class could be worn like the ribbon of the Iron Cross 2nd Class (through the second buttonhole). Nonetheless combat soldiers tended to hold the War Merit Cross in low regard, referring to its wearers as being in ‘Iron Cross Training’. The Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross was a neck decoration and worn the same way as the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross.