Posted 8 years ago
ho2cultcha
(5051 items)
i found this on the sidewalk near my house while walking my dog last night. how bizarre is that?! i don't know whether it is an old piece or a new nazi youth piece or what. i don't know of any nazi groups or nazis around here, but it is oakland, so nothing surprises really.
any info appreciated. i'm kind of freaked out about finding it!
Wow, this cigarette case is quite a find and even though it's offensive, it's also very collectable.
do you think it's old/vintage? i really don't know.
Bizarre is Right !!!
I don't know and I am certainly no expert where German WW2 items are concerned.
Based solely on some quick research I just did, the name on the outside pulled up on google DR. FRITZ DOTD said he was a top Nazi engineer and head of the ammunition dept. He was killed in the plane during the war.
wow! i just did some research and i think it is real and very valuable. it's a nazi science/engineering award of merit mounted to a period cigarette case. it was lying there open on the sidewalk and i kicked it thinking it was just a piece of trash.
Yes, they do have some value, it's apparently a merit award as you say and my guess is the pin clasp that was on the back originally had been removed and it was soldered to this case at some point. Who knows if it was done during the war or sometime after.
Found this site regarding your Award......interesting read......scroll all the way down...
http://quanonline.com/military/military_reference/german/badges/civilian/todt.php
DR. FRITZ TOTD pin (needle) back badges are being made in USA and sold online for $ 25. There are brooch type reproductions with narrow pin, too
Are there any marks on the cigarette case ? We might determine if it`s silver. If not, the cigarette case is practically worthless. On the other hand, the owner of the badge might have decided to fix it to the cigarette case using soft solder (lead/tin). I`m afraid we will never know if it`s genuine WW II item.
Your a very lucky man! Great find!
Michael
It is a great find!
I hope it's silver!
Well, it certainly is an odd find.
Really weird but think it's old. First cigarette case...who has those anymore. Second. Obvious wear. But I don't know. My guesses
i think that the badge is silver and the case is nickel plated brass. i also am pretty sure that it is the real thing from all the feedback i've gotten on fb about it [including offers to buy it].
Looks really old to me. Yes offensive to many but worth a grip, I would imagine. Someone probably got a loot and dropped that along the way.
nice find...............So on what street ....lol
i cannot answer that Roycroft! i think you may be right shareurpassion!
That does look old. Sounds like you experienced something out of a "Twilight Zone" episode...
Offensive yes but we should never forget even the horrible history. My uncle was in D-Day but he brought home souveners along with bad nightmares.
I agree dlp! Thanks for the comment.
Why do you think it is offensive? It is a beautiful piece, and it has an eagle on it, and a swastika. Nothing offensive at all. I would collect it. I have Hitler stuff, I even have the Wermacht interrogating a Jewish woman just before executing her for partisan activity. It is only offensive if you are small minded. History is important.
Are you serious?
It is historical, AND certainly many folks find the symbols of Nazi Germany offensive.
A little reading about Nazi Germany may help you to understand why many consider this symbol of hate so offensive!
scott
Wonder if there was a burglary near by?
You used to be able to catalogue-order Nazi reproduction stuff in the 60's and 70's. In particular I've seen these "German Luftwaffe" paratrooper folding knives at antique malls that are a little old and look old, but they're not as old as the 40's. I've seen maybe a dozen of them around. Fritz Todt is actually a name I know off hand, he was a very, very famous engineer during WWII and pilot I think. Its a little hard to believe his personal cigarette case was lying on a street in Oakland. It would be like finding Dr. Mengele's personal comb.
Found this on Wiki:
On 8 February 1944, the second anniversary of Todt's death, Hitler awarded the Dr.-Fritz-Todt-Preis as a Badge of Honor of the Nazi Party for "Innovative accomplishments, which are of great importance for the Volk community because of the improvement of their weapons, ammunition and military equipment, and the saving of labor, raw materials and energy". The Badge of Honor came with a material prize and a certificate, was awarded as a medal made of gold, silver, or steel. The Golden Award of Honor was presented by Hitler in person upon proposal by the responsible Gauleiter, upon the joint proposal of Robert Ley, the director of the corresponding Deutsche Arbeitsfront and NSDAP leaders, and the director of the "Main office for Technology in the NSDAP", Albert Speer.
And next this article is the same emblem on your case. My guess is that this is a catalogue piece from the 60's-70's.
You may be right Stillwater. I don't think that anyone is saying that it belonged to Fritz Todt, but it was a medal awarded in his name by the Nazi gov't.
adversus solem ne loquitor
i could flip this stuff almost every week , i probably would be rich , well i prefer to stay poor
ever heard of Wannsee Conference -