German Iron Crosses Recovered from Battle of Stalingrad

Description

German Iron Crosses Recovered from Battle of Stalingrad

Three German relic iron Crosses,( Battle of Stalingrad)

These three German Iron crosses, 1st class recovered from Stalingrad (1942-43).  two pieces have the pin back, and one has screw back.  You can still make out the Swastika in the centre of two of them.

Relic condition

Adolf Hitler restored the Iron Cross in 1939 as a German decoration (rather than Prussian), and continued the tradition of issuing it in various classes. Legally, it is based on the “Enactment for the re-introduction of the Iron Cross” (Verordnung über die Erneuerung des Eisernen Kreuzes) of 1 September 1939.^[9] The Iron Cross of World War II was divided into three main series of decorations with an intermediate category, the Knight’s Cross, instituted between the lowest, the Iron Cross, and the highest, the Grand Cross. The Knight’s Cross replaced the Prussian Pour le Mérite or “Blue Max”. Hitler did not care for the Pour le Mérite, as it was a Prussian order that could be awarded only to officers. The ribbon of the medal (2nd class and Knight’s Cross) was different from the earlier Iron Crosses as the color red was used in addition to the traditional black and white (black and white were the colours of Prussia, while black, white, and red were the colours of Nazi Germany). Hitler also created the War Merit Cross as a replacement for the non-combatant version of the Iron Cross. It also appeared on certain Nazi flags in the upper left corner. The sides of the cross were curved, like most original iron crosses.

Pair of German relic iron Crosses

German Iron Crosses Recovered from Battle of Stalingrad