Original Items: Only One Set Available. This is a very nice collection of German WWII Awards and tinnies, which was brought back from the European theater by a USGI after the war was concluded. Many solders traded these on the way back, and would end up with a pocket full of various different collectible items, and this set represents the typical "haul" one might have come back with. It includes a large variety of tinnies, along with a KvKII with swords and a war merit medal.

This lovely set includes:

- One German WWII War Merit Cross 2nd Class with Swords (Kriegsverdienstkreuz II Klasse mit Schwertern) with ribbon. The metal still retains much of the original silver wash, with some overall oxidation and patination, particularly on the date. The hanger loop is not marked, and the original ribbon is in good shape, looking to have been attached to a hanger pin previously, now missing.

- One German WWII 1939 War Merit Medal (Kriegsverdienstmedaille): Comes complete with the original ribbon, in very good lightly patinated condition. There is a bit of oxidation to both sides of the medal. The ribbon shows just a tiny bit of fraying and age toning, and has a pin through it.

There are also 22 Tinnie Event badges and similar, including a 1937 REICHSPARTEITAG Nuremberg Rally tinnie, a small DES FÜHRERS KAMPF ZUR SEE booklet, a GAUTAG AM WESTWALL KAISERS=LAUTERN 1939 Western Wall / Siegfried Line tinnie, and many other items. Definitely some great potential for identification and translation research! Please consult the high resolution pictures for details on what is included.

A wonderful totally genuine grouping perfect for the German Medal and Insignia collector. Ready to research and display!

More information on some of the awards in this set:

"Tinnies" (Veranstaltungsabzeichen - Event Badges) are small commemorative pins or medals, acquired when one attended a specific event held in Germany. They were often made of thin stamped metal, bakelite, or even pressed paper. Many of these were given out as part of the WHW (Winterhilfswerk - Winter Help Work) Organization, which often involved Germans traveling quite a bit to help out the war effort. Many others were given for the annual Reichsparteitag (Reich Party Congress), otherwise known as the Nuremberg Rallies.

War Merit Cross 2nd Class (Kriegsverdienstkreuz) with Swords (for Combat)
This was a decoration of NSDAP Germany during the Second World War, which could be awarded to military personnel and civilians alike. By the end of the war it was issued in four degrees, and had a related civil decoration. It was created by Adolf AH in October 1939 as a successor to the non-combatant Iron Cross which was used in earlier wars. The award was graded the same as the Iron Cross: War Merit Cross Second Class, War Merit Cross First Class, and Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross. The award had two variants: with swords given to soldiers for exceptional service "not in direct connection with combat", and without swords for meritorious service to civilians in "furtherance of the war effort". As with the Iron Cross, Recipients had to have the lower grade of the award before getting the next level.

The War Merit Medal (Kriegsverdienstmedaille) was a World War II German military decoration awarded to recognize outstanding service by civilians in relation to the war effort. It was instituted on 19 August 1940 and usually awarded to those workers in factories who significantly exceeded work quotas. The War Merit Medal was awarded only to Germans and non-Germans civilians, to men and women. An estimated 4.9 million medals were awarded by the end of the war in Europe. It was closely related to the War Merit Cross, which could be awarded to military personnel and civilians alike for outstanding service to the war effort.

The medal was designed by Professor Richard Klein of Munich. It was a circular bronze award bearing the design of the War Merit Cross on the front (obverse), and the inscription "For War Merit 1939" (Für Kriegsverdienst 1939) on the reverse side. It was suspended from a ribbon colored similar to the War Merit Cross, except for a thin red vertical strip added to the center of the black portion. When worn, it was either as a medal ribbon bar above the left breast pocket (soldiers who had earned the medal as civilians could wear it on their uniform), or with the ribbon only through the second buttonhole of a jacket. Since this was a non-combat award, the medal never incorporated swords. After 15 May, 1943, the award of this medal to foreigners was superseded by the Medal of Merit of the Order of the German Eagle.