German Iron Cross

This document was actually executed on 23 June, 1940, the day before it was awarded, as seen in this close-up of the citation. This is an overall close-up of the entire citation portion.

Adolf Hitler hand-signed this document with a fairly dry quill pen.  There are some noticeable skips (not bubbles) in portions of the signature.  The crossovers are readily apparent and there is bleeding into the vellum as seen on this view of the back of the signature.

There is some slight warping to the hard wood boards of the folder and some minor wear to the leather and bumps at the corners from years of long storage.  The retaining loop on the inside has broken loose at the bottom where it joins the spine. This could be repaired to be virtually invisible. The maker's name FRIEDA THIERSCH is gold embossed on the lower back cover. Note the interior portions of the covers are faced in vellum, not silk. There is some slight transfer of the printing of the document to the back of the covering sheet portion of the citation from many years of being stored closed.

These are views of the front and inside with the document outside of the retainer (both shown below) and the rear of the folder.  The gold eagle on the front is shown in close-up here.

The folder measures 36mm by 45mm (14-1/4 by 17-3/4 inches), closed.  The document measures 43mm by 70mm (17 by 28 inches).

The condition is very good to near excellent, as shown, with exceptions noted above.

Note: This is the SAME document as shown on the German documents webpage on this site. It is shown here for convenience. There is only one.

There is some slight wear to the pebble grain finish of the cover, and a couple of small stains, apparent in the image. The gilt eagle is in near excellent intact condition.

The frame measures 15 by 19 inches. The cover is about 12 by 16 inches.

The overall condition is near excellent with strong color and sharp gilt.

World War I WWI Imperial German Army Soldier Wooden Cross With Dogtag

This is a very heavy two piece wooden cross with carved Iron Cross and date of death of the solder.  This cross was replaced by a more durable and permanent stone marker when the wood started to deteriorate. It was used in a memorial display that was destroyed during WWII. The cross was recovered and subsequently came to the US with the family and was sold with the rest of the estate in the 1960s. It has a dog tag at the junction of the arms, with the Iron Cross above and dated 25.7.17.  This soldier was killed in action during the bombardment preceding the Third Battle of Ypres (Flanders Offensive). He was assigned to 15. Kompanie Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 435.  His name was Albert Hofmann.

Here is a view of the side. This is a very finely detailed rendition.

The cross measures 18 inches across and 28 inches high. The arms are 3-1/2 inches square.

The condition is generally very good with some deterioration of the wood and tarnish on the dog tag from age, as shown.

The other side of the ribbon is shown here.  This is a close-up showing the detail of the finishing on one of the ties.

The wide part measures 38cm by 44mm. It is 74cm overall including the ties.

The condition is very good with some moderate signs of wear, and some soiling, as shown.

The other side of the ribbon is shown here.  The ends are finished on the wide ribbon, and there is a sewn dart at the center to accommodate the loop without puckering.

The wide part measures 31cm by 46mm. It is 80cm overall including the ties.

The condition is very good with some moderate signs of wear, and some soiling, as shown.

The other side of the ribbon is shown here. 

The condition is very good with some smudges on the ribbon.

The other side of the ribbon is shown here. 

The ribbon measures a full 17 inches long.

The condition is near excellent, as shown.

The other side of the ribbon is shown here. It came with a medal I currently have in my inventory.

There is a hole about 2cm in from one end, as shown.

The ribbon measures 46cm by 46mm (18 inches by 1-7/8 inches).

The condition is generally good with moderate signs of wear, and significant soiling and the hole at one ends, as shown. It is priced accordingly.

The other side of the ribbon is shown here.

The ribbon measures 42cm by 15mm (16-1/2 inches by 5/8 inches).

The condition is generally good with moderate signs of wear, and significant soiling and the hole at one ends, as shown. It is priced accordingly.

This is a view the back. It has no maker marks apparent.

It measures 40mm square.

The condition is good to near very good with overall wear, and deep tarnish from age, as shown.

This device was presented on the occasion of Hitler's 50th Birthday on 20 April, 1939 prior to the reinstitution of the Iron Cross on 1 September, 1939. The attachment is a wide flat pin, similar to an IC 1st Class, as shown on the back. It is marked BERLIN on the lower arm and has an impressed facsimile of Hitler's signature at the junction of the cross.

The cross proper is made in one piece, with raised lettering on the face. The separately applied center features a profile of AH surrounded by a wreath of laurel and oak leaves. It measures 36mm square.

The condition is good to near very good with overall wear, and deep tarnish from age, as shown.

There is no ribbon present. The loop is a soldered twisted pair of wires, as shown on the back

The condition is good to near very good with overall wear. One of the swords is missing its grip.

The back is shown here.  It is maker marked L/50 and content marked "900" and "SILBER".

The condition is excellent throughout.

The back is shown here

The condition is good to near very good throughout, with some wear to the plate and minor dings from routine wear.

The device measures 25mm square. It is one-sided and has no maker mark apparent. This is a  close-up of the medal. It measures 135mm overall (5-1/4 inches).

There is some deep tarnish from age, visible in this image of the back.

There is some fraying to the original ribbon, as shown. The remaining parts are near excellent.

The back is shown here

This medal was only authorized once, and presented to Hermann Göring early in the war.

There is no jump loop or ribbon present.

If you have a Göring uniform and need a decent looking medal until you find a real one, this is one to consider. It is cast pewter with black paint.

The condition is good to near very good throughout.

The other side of the ribbon is shown here.

The ribbon measures 53cm by 9mm (21 inches by 3/8 inches).

The condition is generally good with moderate signs of wear, and significant soiling and the hole at one ends, as shown. It is priced accordingly.

This spange variant shows exceptional detail at the neck feathers, large breast, head and hooked beak of the eagle.

The back round attachment pins are  shown here. This shows the ribbon as folded over the back.

This one has a wide flat pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

This spange variant shows exceptional detail at the neck feathers, large breast, head and hooked beak of the eagle.

The back is shown here. It has no maker mark apparent.

This one has a wide flat pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

This spange variant shows exceptional detail at the neck feathers, large breast, head and hooked beak of the eagle.

The back is shown here. It has no maker mark apparent.

This one has a wide flat pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some minor wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

This spange variant shows exceptional detail at the neck feathers and large breast of the eagle.

The back is shown here. It has a faint maker mark apparent on the narrow flat pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some minor wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate. There is a slight red stain on the surface that could be polished off, if desired.

This spange variant shows exceptional detail at the neck feathers and large breast of the eagle.

The back is shown here. It has no maker mark apparent.

This one has a narrow flat pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some minor wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

This spange variant has a wide large triangular breast, and nicely detailed wing feathers on the eagle.

The back is shown here. It has no maker mark apparent.

This one has a wide flat pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

This spange variant has a wide large triangular breast, and nicely detailed wing feathers on the eagle.

The back is shown here. It has no maker mark apparent.

This one has a narrow flat pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

This spange variant has a wide large triangular breast, and nicely detailed wing feathers on the eagle.

The back is shown here. It has no maker mark apparent.

This one has a narrow flat pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout.

The back is shown here with the pin down. It has a stamped L/11 maker mark.

This one has a round needle pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

The back is shown here with the pin down. It has a stamped L/12 maker mark.

This one has a flat thin bottle-shaped pin.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

This spange variant shows nice detail at the neck feathers, large breast, head and hooked beak of the eagle.

A close-up of the front and the back are shown here. It has an L/11 maker mark apparent.

This one has four wide flat prongs.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

This spange variant shows nice detail at the neck feathers, large breast, head and hooked beak of the eagle.

It has an L/11 maker mark on the back.

This one has four wide flat prongs.

The condition is near excellent throughout with some wear and moderate tarnish apparent to the silver plate.

The back is shown here. It has no maker mark visible (the ribbon is tight to the back, there may be a mark underneath).

This one has four flat pins, as shown.

The condition is near excellent throughout with very minor wear and tarnish apparent to the silver plate.