Original Item: Only One Available. This is a lovely service used matched pair (left and right) of 1939-1945 Pattern SA Kragenspiegelen (Collar tabs), often called "Gorget Patches". These have the correct lacquered buckram internal stiffeners, with the front covered in red felt wool, and both have gold bullion borders. This color combination indicates the wearer was a member of the SA general staff, and not assigned to any specific group.

The right side tab has a hand embroidered ᛉ Leben (Life) rune in the center, a design based on the "Algiz" rune of the "Elder Furthark" runes. Many of the NSDAP organizations utilized the "Armanen runes", a series of "pseudo-runes" compiled by occultist Guido von List and published in 1906-1908. In his table this run was known as "Man". In the HJ Youth Organization, the "Life" rune was used for medical personnel, all the way from orderlies up to Doctors.

In the SA, these were used by the staff at the medical training schools, and with the bullion border, these were definitely for an officer, however we are not sure of the rank, as there are not any rank "pips" attached to the left side patch. Both are in very nice service used condition, showing wear from use, but no signs of abuse or major damage.

A great set of SA collar tabs, ready to add to your collection!

The S.A.-
The Sturmabteilung, literally Storm Detachment, was the NSDAP Party's original paramilitary. It played a significant role in Adolf AH's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s. Its primary purposes were providing protection for NSDAP rallies and assemblies, disrupting the meetings of opposing parties, fighting against the paramilitary units of the opposing parties, especially the Red Front Fighters League (Rotfrontkämpferbund) of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD), and intimidating Romani, trade unionists, and, especially, Jews – for instance, during the NSDAP boycott of Jewish businesses.

The SA were also called the "Brownshirts" (Braunhemden) from the color of their uniform shirts, similar to Benito Mussolini's blackshirts. The SA developed pseudo-military titles for its members, with ranks that were later adopted by several other NSDAP Party groups, chief amongst them the Schutzstaffel (SS), which originated as a branch of the SA before being separated. Brown-colored shirts were chosen as the SA uniform because a large number of them were cheaply available after World War I, having originally been ordered during the war for colonial troops posted to Germany's former African colonies.

The SA became disempowered after Adolf AH ordered the "blood purge" of 1934. This event became known as the Night of the Long Knives (die Nacht der langen Messer). The SA continued to exist, but was effectively superseded by the SS, although it was not formally dissolved until after NSDAP Germany's final capitulation to the Allies in 1945.