Original Item: Only One Available. This is an excellent example of a WWII German Red Cross (DRK) EM/NCO's Belt Buckle (Koppelschloß). This buckle features one-piece aluminum construction, with a 45mm, slightly convex, stamped metal box buckle, and a front design introduced in 1938. The front of the buckle a large pebbled field, with an eagle with down-swept wings clutching a "Red Cross" in its talons and with a mobile swas (hook cross) to its breast. This is all surrounded by an open-topped wreath of laurels.

The buckle is in excellent condition, with minimal wear, and a lot of the factory darkened finish present, especially on the back of the buckle. A very attractive display piece that still retains almost all of the detail on the insignia. The back of the buckle is marked with OLC in a diamond, the mark of Overhoff & Cie. of Lüdenscheid, a city with a large garment accessory and part industry. Also on the back is GES. GESCH., for "Gesetzlich Geschützt" (By-law Protected).

A very choice example of a rare WWII German Red Cross (DRK) buckle, ready to display!

History of the German Red Cross (DRK)

The DRK, "Deutsches Rotes Kreuz" (German Red Cross), a voluntary civil assistance organization originally instituted in 1864, was officially acknowledged by the Geneva Convention in 1929. In December 1937 it gained status as a legally recognized organization by the NSDAP. As with other essential services in Third Reich Germany, it came under control of the NSDAP in late 1938 under the auspices of the Ministry of the Interior's Social Welfare Organization.