TS Military Find

[palidin20603]

3 inch sterling silver aerial gunner wing badge pin back. Weighs 18 grams. Do you think it is WWII era? That is what I believe.

 

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[jpdriver1]

nice !!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[vpnavy]

Nice buy Palidin. Thanks for sharing...

 

[Lafitte Deux]

I believe they are WW2. Can you provide a pic of the back?

 

[DixieLandMan]

Cool find. Looks like WWII to me.

 

[palidin20603]

Here is the back. Only mark is "Sterling". HH

 

[vwayne1]

Hard to nail down to a certain 4 year period ( ww2). Those wings were issued in silver for quite a while.

 

[diggummup]

Those wings were issued from April 20, 1943 until July 26, 1949. So, mid-late war is possible. They were awarded to individuals who completed the 6 week aerial gunnery course. The only thing I don't like is that it looks like they have been cleaned at some point.

 

[palidin20603]

I agree. It has a white paste like film on it, so I bet it was cleaned. What does it do to the value? I got it for $6.

 

[billn1956]

Should not do anything to the value.Its not old enough for some one to be buying it for a antique, just its historacal value, or because there grandad was in the war and for what ever reson they do not have his to remember him by.

 

[diggummup]

I agree. It has a white paste like film on it, so I bet it was cleaned. What does it do to the value? I got it for $6.

It should not hurt the value on these, as they are a common set of wings. In general though, it depends on who's buying them. Some collectors keep them shined up, many others like the original patina. Luckily it is a set of wings and they are kind of an exception to the rule of "never clean anything" when it comes to many areas of collecting, militaria or otherwise. Besides the fact that wings were kept polished anyway during their active use. Any pilot worth his salt wouldn't be caught dead with a dirty pair of wings on, so in that respect it's all good. On the other side of the coin, cleaning is not something I like to do to any historical object unless it is needed for preservation. The more you clean a silver object the more silver you lose. I'm not talking about the silver value, i'm talking about the details of the piece. High points get worn down, details get rubbed away, scratching is possible, etc., etc.