Cased German Cross in Silver

Product Description: An outstanding Cased German Cross in Silver in near mint condition. The cross itself was produced by the firm of “C.F. Zimmermann”. The wreath on the front of the cross is stamped out of brass and retains all of its high quality silver frosting and burnished highlights. The black enameled swastika shines like a mirror and is without any damage or scratches. The white background disc retains all of its silver frosting, a very light patina can be seen if one looks hard enough. The dark starburst retains nearly all of its darkened finish and has the correct die flaw at the 11 O’clock position. The backplate of this cross is made out of “CupAl”, which is copper coated aluminum, making this a lightweight version. The reverse of the cross retains excellent silvering. The pin, hinge and catch are all originally attached to the award. The reverse of the pin is stamped “20” for the maker “C.F. Zimmermann”. This is a fantastic example of a Cased German Cross in Silver which will for sure be a highlight in any collection.

Historical Description: The German Cross in Silver was instituted on September 28th, 1941. The German High Command saw it necessary to create an award which would bridge the gap between the War Merit Cross First Class and the Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross. Once instituted, the German Cross became one of Germany’s highest military decorations. The German Cross was similar to the Knights Cross in regards that the award was not based off of any previous awards in German history. It was a unique creation which also ended with the war. There were approximately 2,500 recipients of the German Cross in Silver. This number, however, does not reflect the total amount of German Crosses produced.

The German Cross was actually not a cross at all, it took on the form of an eight-point star resembling some of the former breast awards of the Imperial era. The award came in two forms, a metal version and a cloth version. The metal version being the most complex of the two, it consisted of five separate pieces being fitted and held together using four to twelve rivets depending on who the manufacturer was. The cloth version follows the exact same design as the metal produced version except the entire cross is cloth with the exception of the laurel wreath still being metal.

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