Excavated WWII German Close Combat Clasp in Gold
Item #: WR1217
Click on an image to enlarge
This is an excavated German Close Combat clasp from World War II. This badge was instituted on 25 November, 1942, to recognize the courage of the German soldier in hand to hand combat. Adolf Hitler was directly involved with the development of the badge, and reserved the right to award the badge in gold personally to the soldier. The badge is die cast and made of zinc. It has a width of 3 7/8" and a height of 1 1/16", and is slightly convex. The center piece is the German eagle clutching a canted swastika in it's talons above a crossed bayonet and grenade. The center is cut out and has a flat square of blackened steel crimped in place on the backside. The pin is pin still securely mounted on the badge, as is the clutch. The makers stamp of JFS, representing Josef Feix & Sohne of Gablonz is visible beside the hinge of the pin. Stamped on the left side of the badge to the right of the catch is the mark of the badge designer, F.E.C. W.E./PEEKHAUS/BERLIN. This badge is in gold, meaning the soldier it was presented to was involved in at least 50 close combat actions. To the common German combat soldier, the Gold Close Combat Clasp was regarded with higher esteem than the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Adolf Hitler reserved the right to personally present this award. With somewhere between 18 and 20 million Germans serving the Wehrmacht and Waffen SS 36,400 were awarded the Bronze class, 9500 the Silver class and only 631 received the Gold class. I have no history of the badge, where it was recovered or how it made it's way to the states. Most likely it was brought home as a souvenir by a G.I. I just wonder if he's the one that ended the German soldier's streak of victorious combat encounters!
Your Price $275.00 USD
Sorry we are not accepting on line orders at this time. If you are interested in an item please contact me at 615 717 7792 or email me at mwkiser07@gmail.com.
If you have ordered or are considering ordering an antique weapon or artifact from our website please be advised that these artifacts and antique weapons are sold strictly as collectible antiques.
We strongly recommends that these artifacts be enjoyed and appreciated for their historical significance and not ever fired. By ordering you are acknowledging these facts, warnings and assume full responsibility for your personal actions with regard to them.
We DO NOT sell modern firearms , all our inventory is pre 1898 and are classified by the ATF as antiques and require no government paperwork to own.