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German Gorget necklace - Militaria experts?
PA Shootist
Member Posts: 689 ✭✭✭
My daughter found in an estate jewelry collection a necklace from obviously WWII era Germany, with a total of 17 medallions, maybe silver, or an alloy, tarnished and we have not tried to polish or clean. Each medallion is oval shape, approximately 13/16" x 9/16", about 1/16" thick. There are alternating raised symbols on both sides, one symbol an eagle with wings downward, facing left, and clutching a swastika in its talons; the other appears to be two overlapping leafed branches. No clasps, holes at outer ends of each medallion. Total length is a little over 14 inches. The eagle perhaps a Reichsadler, the other symbol I don't know. No information otherwise. We would like to know its use, history, collectibility, etc.
Comments
I found a photo of a chain on the internet which appears identical to this. It says it was a gorget worn by a regimental standard bearer, and would have come with 21 of the two-sided medallions, a clasp, and a much larger plate in the middle, bottom, up front, with likely additional decoration, for the individual unit, or similar. The particular eagle was a standard "Reichsadler" from the beginning of the NSDAP movement, clutching the "Hakenkreuz" in its talons. Photos of standard bearers at such as Nuremberg gatherings show this emblem. No information has been found on the leaf branches, which were a standard part of the gorget links. Neither have I found any information about the medal the medallions were made from. Anyone out there knows something, it would be much appreciated. At the least, an interesting though incomplete artifact from the Third Reich. No estimates found for establishing a value, if any, and apparently the Hakenkreuz emblem is politically incorrect.