Rare Juncker Round Wreath Pilot Badge

Product Description: A Juncker Round Wreath Pilot Badge in excellent condition. The badge is made out of a dark grey zinc base metal. The wreath was finished using a thin silver wash which has faded over time leaving most traces in the badges recesses. The eagle is a Juncker third pattern eagle with a grey wash, which has also faded over time. The badges eagle is attached to the wreath with two brass rivets. The size of these rivets as well as the way they were crimped into place are exactly as we see on other textbook Juncker made Pilot Badges as well as other Juncker made badges. The barrel hinge is securely soldered in the upper recess of the badges wreath and faint evidences of silver wash can be seen around this solder area. A round wire “C” catch is soldered to a circular base plate, which was also soldered to the wreath to give the catch more strength. Light hand finishing (filing) can be seen on the edges of the wreath and eagle, another characteristic of Juncker produced badges. A Juncker Round Wreath Pilot Badge doesn’t come up on the market often, and this is a nice one!

Historical Description: The Juncker Round Wreath Pilot Badge has piqued the curiosity of collectors for years. The collecting community has never been able to figure out the true purpose or intention of this unique design. The badge can’t be found in product books, nor period photographs to decipher exactly what it was used for. The badge only deviated from the standard pilot by using a round wreath instead of the typically encountered oval wreath. However, the evidence of period manufacture for these round wreath pilots are quite solid. The firm Juncker manufactured many of Germany’s awards and badges during the Third Reich, and assembled them in ways unique only to them through finishing or hardware used. We can look at the type of hinge, pin, catch, and rivets as well as the way these were attached or finished to determine maker as well as authenticity. I should also point out that the Juncker Factory was bombed out in November of 1944, and it is believed that the dies and tools to manufacture and finish their badges were completely destroyed. So producing a “Juncker” badge after the war ended really wasn’t an option without all the tools.

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