Description
Product Description: This Bronze Panzer Badge is a desirable and relatively scarce variant, with a great look. It is made of stamped metal. The metal surface retains most of the original factory applied bronze finish, with wear to the high points revealing the lighter gray color of the base metal. The bronze finish shows attractive dark tones, and the surface has a nice, even patina, with no sign of ever having been cleaned. The badge retains crisp detail. The reverse of the badge is hollow, typical for this stamped construction style, and shows original finish and a deep old patina. The badge is unmarked, but this variant is known to have been made by the firm of Wilhelm Deumer in Lüdenscheid. The hinge and catch are soldered with sheet metal plates. The hinge plate has the painted number “77,” perhaps an old inventory number. The hinge is missing the retaining pin for the attachment pin, but the round wire pin remains present. This Bronze Panzer Badge has charming character and displays nicely. The condition rates as excellent.
Historical Description: Instituted on December 20th, 1939, the silver Panzer Assault Badge was created to recognize the combat achievement of Panzer crewman who met the combat requirements set forth by the German High Command (OKW). On June 1st, 1940, following the blitzkrieg against France (Fall Gelb), a bronze grade was introduced to include armored reconnaissance, motorcycle riflemen, and panzer-grenadier units. The requirements for both versions were the same, the soldier must have participated in three combat assaults on three separate days to be eligible. As with all the combat badges, multiple assaults on a single day still only counted as one combat day. The Panzer Assault Badge consists of an oakleaf wreath surrounding a Panzer (Tank) with the German National Eagle positioned at the top, clutching a swastika. The Standard Panzer Assault Badges are still seen at military shows, even now. The German Army had thousands of Panzer crewmen who became eligible for the award as the war progressed. Because of the large number of soldiers who had fulfilled the requirements for the award, a high demand for producing of the Panzer Assault Badge was needed. In response to this, approximately 35 manufacturers were authorized to produce the award between 1939 and 1945. Many of these manufacturers created their own version of the badge by artistically designing their own version of the eagles, wreaths, and tanks on the badge. The design of one Panzer badge may not be identical to the next one encountered. This makes the collecting of the different manufacturers, and their variants, its own niche in the hobby. In recent years, the Panzer Assault Badge has become a popular collectible, and as a result, fewer are seen on the market today than in years prior.
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