Cased Iron Cross First Class Spange – Mayer Set

Product Description: This cased Iron Cross First Class Spange set from the firm of B. H. Mayer is an extremely attractive gem. Both the Spange and the case are made by Mayer, making this a matching set. The Spange itself is a top quality piece, struck from a brass alloy (Tombak). The obverse retains a good amount of the high quality silver electroplating and burnishing, with some slight wear, and pleasant toning featuring some pastel blue tones. The reverse of the Spange shows some minor finish wear to the edges. It is unmarked, but is a classic Mayer variant, with a wide pin, barrel hinge, and square wire catch. This Spange is housed in a scarce and extremely well-preserved original case. The exterior of the case is beautiful, and near mint, with the typical glossy “wet” look that these Mayer boxes will have when found in near mint condition. The lid of the box features a really nice embossed illustration of the award, in silver leaf, which is fresh and pristine. The push button and hinge function perfectly. Inside, the case shows light, even patina to the white rayon lining. There is a split in the rayon that covers the hinge, which is normal to see. This cased Iron Cross First Class Spange set has a lot going for it, and rates as excellent.

Historical Description: When Adolf Hitler reinstituted the historical Iron Cross was decoration on September 1, 1939, he also instituted a special new award, the “Wiederholungsspange,” to recognize people who had earned the 1914 Iron Cross during WWI and whose actions in this new war merited being awarded the Iron Cross again. There were two different patterns of this Spange, for the First and Second Classes of the Iron Cross. Both of them took the form of a German national eagle and swastika emblem, with outstretched wings, over a bar with the date “1939.” The First-Class award had a pin attachment or screw back, to enable it to be worn on the uniform pocket over the 1914 Iron Cross. Some combo-type awards are also known, with the Spange fastened to the top arm of the 1914 cross. The Second Class Spange had two or four prongs on the reverse and was affixed to a length of 1914 pattern Iron Cross ribbon. Most of the Spange awards were made of a brass alloy (Buntmetall) with a silver finish, while late war examples were produced from zinc. As with most German combat awards, there were many variations of the Spange produced, including miniature awards for the ribbon bar.

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