Description
Product Description: This Heer Krim Shield is a nice representative example of this campaign award. The stamped metal shield retains nearly all of the beautiful original bronze finish, with attractive golden tones. The surface retains some original shine, with a slight patina from age. There is a slight area of minor surface corrosion near a tip of the eagle’s wing. This shield is crisply stamped, and all of the original detail is intact, with only extremely minimal evident wear. This shield remains affixed to the original factory applied backing of typical wartime field gray wool. The backing fabric has a coarse weave and a nice medium feldgrau color. On the reverse, most of the original black paper backing remains intact. Some missing backing paper around the edge and a small loss to the edge of the wool fabric in one spot suggest this piece may have been affixed to a uniform. The remaining black backing paper completely covers the steel backing plate. The four attachment prongs of the stamped shield are visible through this backing paper layer. This Heer Krim Shield displays nicely and has great eye appeal. The condition rates as excellent.
Historical Description: The Krim Shield was officially instituted by Adolf Hitler on July 25, 1942, stating the award would recognize the “heroic battles” during the campaign on the Crimean Peninsula between September 21, 1941, and July 4, 1942. The battle for the Crimean Peninsula was led by Generalfeldmarschall Erich von Manstein of the 11th Army. Combat during the Crimean Campaign was among some of the fiercest, culminating with the siege and capture of Sevastopol. The shield features a German National Eagle with outstretched arms clutching a swastika, the date 1941/42, and the map of the Crimea. The award was worn on the upper left sleeve of the field or dress uniform. Qualification for the award were, soldiers had to have participated in one of eight specific battles that were a part of the campaign, to have been wounded in action, or to have served 3 months, without interruption, in the Crimea region. Members of all branches of the Wehrmacht, including the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine, were eligible for the award. The shield was made from steel, and later from zinc. They can be found with or without backing cloth. Between 200,000 and 300,000 shields were awarded.
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