German Swastika

[3RINGER]

Still to much rain to hunt so I was going through and doing research on some old finds.

This is a ring I found over near Tellahoma TN. The ring has three initials on the top (FCD or JCD or TCD can not tell about the first letter due to the print) wt. is 6.4 g and has been cut or re sized at the bottom. What really got me was the swastika on the inside.

Two things on this find kind of throw me for a loop though, 1) Back before WWII the swastika was used for good luck but all that changed during the war. 2) This ring was found from what research I could tell from a location of a German POW camp ( camp Forrest) at that location. Activated in 1941 and on May 12, 1942 it first housed civilian German, Japanese and Italians who we wanted to keep a eye on. In late 42 or early 43 it then changed over to hold real POWs from Germany and Italy.

http://www.blountweb.com/blountcountymilitary/wars/ww2/camp_forrest/camp_forrest.htm

My Q now is this ring prior to the war or a keep sake of some German POW from his sweetheart
Anyone have any input on this one? hope you enjoy the pic's

 

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[Minstrel]

I went through everything I have on WWII Nazi jewelry, pins, watches etc and cannot find anywhere that a ring was stamped inside with a Swastika. I would tend to think that this is a very personal or custom ring given that it is stamped inside and small. I would try to find out if there are any records of the members of the camp to see if you can match up the letters on the top. Note that most all rings of that period were of silver not gold, only the upper members of the Party had gold rings--also makes your find interesting to say the least--"Who was this person" that had gold instead of silver.
Wish I could give you more.
Good luck and very nice find.

 

[3RINGER]

Thanks for the information. I'm going through as much as I can find on the those names, nothing as of yet. just started on this one due to finding what I now find to be a counterfeit capped bust..alot of on that took up alot of time but now this is my goal.

The swastika is hidden or placed within the ring. I'll post more as I find it. thanks again for the silver not gold info...peeks my interest even more

 

[Lowbatts]

The Nazi movement in the U.S. prior to our entry in WW2 was a small number as a percentage of total German descendents in the country. Many of those tried to remain or become undisclosed at the war's onset, much like the former communist party members did during and after the war, pehaps it belonged to one of those folks?

 

[MilitariaCollector]

I think the ring dates from the turn of the century. The letter engraving style, and quality of the ring seem similiar to signet rings popular around the late 1800's to the early 1900's. I dont think this piece has anything to do with Nazi Germany or that time period. The Nazis were usually pretty flamboyant about marking their items, and I would believe that the face of the ring would have a large swastika for everyone to see, rather than something small hidden on the inside of the ring. The Nazi swastika was also usually tilted, unlike yours. Also, if the ring was WWII German, I would expect to see a makers mark on the ring more so than just a swastika stamp. Rings were not issued, they were usually bought privately, and the swastika stamp was just the symbol of their military/party, not a manufacturers mark. I believe the swastika on your ring is for good luck. If I also remember correctly, I think in the early part of the 20th century, jewelry/items made of precious metals were required to be marked with the gold/silver content (like sterling, 14kt, 22kt, etc). That would be a good thing to look up because it might help to date your ring. Manufacturer's marks on jewelry were also more common after the turn of the century too.

 

[oldgoat]

I don't think that swastika is Nazi-based, looks more like the India swastika...backwards from the nazi swastika...jmo.

 

[PBK]

I'm pretty sure that the swastika is an early 1900's jewelry manufacturer's mark. Because of the swastika's widespread popularity as a good luck symbol prior to its adoption by the Nazis, a number of jewelry firms used variations of it as a trademark. Among these were the C. Ray Randall Co. of North Attleboro, MA, and Walter McKittrick of St. Louis, MO.

 

[3RINGER]

Thanks all.

I'm going to look those locations up on the net and see what I can find out.

 

[Drache]

I don't think that swastika is Nazi-based, looks more like the India swastika...backwards from the nazi swastika...jmo.

You've got it! The Nazi Swastika ONLY faced ONE way whereas the swastika used in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism can face either way.

 

[longsocks]

I might be wrong on this but I think the Dutch had a good luck symbol that looked something like that as well , dunno ..

 

[Lowbatts]

Good call, forgot about that former use of the swastika!

 

[TexasDigger1]

Very nice ring you have there, probably one of a kind, if only it could talk. There are a few acres not far from where I live that used to be a German POW camp during the war here in Texas. Landowner wouldn't let anyone hunt a few years back, your post has motivated me to ask for permission again, it's all pasture land. HH

 

[beaverdigger]

My Great Grandfather was a member of the 45th Infantry before world war II and on the shoulder of his uniform was a swastika. It was latter changed to a Thunderbird after the Nazi adopted it as their emblem. Also the state flag of Oklahoma was a red sun on a white background. I think it was changed to the current flag back in the early 40's also.

 

[Drache]

In Japanese there is a swastika called manji and can mean love and mercy, or strength and intelligence.

 

[arizonaames]

In China, the sign is the same and can be found on many temples dating back 1,000s of years. It means good things. The Naxis (Some translations, Nazis because zi and xi are pronounced SH in Chinese) are also an ethnic group of Chinese in Lijinag,Yunnan Province, PRC, just north of Dali (where I stayed for a week a few years ago on Lake Erhai), and their dress is very distinctive. This is an ethnic group that again goes back 1,000s of years. It is probably the smallest Ethnic group in China with less than a 1,000 people....

 

[Dirty WhiteBoy]

Maybe it belonged to a modern day SKINHEAD! Let me add that it is a very nice find!