Germany, Wehrmacht. A War Merit Cross I Class with Swords, by Friedrich Orth Province of China brass reinforced backer

brass reinforced backer

measuring 36 mm x 31 mm

maker marked "KULTAKESKUS O

and Part Two - The Navy's SBS: 8 - The Continuing Wars (The Malayan Emergency

clasp measuring 24 mm in diameter

Germany, Wehrmacht. A War Merit Cross I Class with Swords, by Friedrich Orth Province of China brass reinforced backer(Kriegsverdienstkreuz I. Klasse mit Schwertern). Constructed of silvered tombak, consisting of a Maltese Cross with crossed swords piercing the centrepiece, the obverse with pebbled arms and a central wreathed mobile swastika, the reverse with a block hinge emanating from an oval plate and a banjo style pinback meeting a flat wire catch similarly emanating from an oval plate, the pinback maker marked with LDO code L15 for a controversial variation now