Item number: M543-3

Year: AD 1934-1945

Material: Bronze

Provenance: Teutoburger Münzauktion GmBH 2025

This is an Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (Ehrenkreuz des Weltkrieges 1914/1918), commonly known as the Hindenburg Cross (Hindenburgkreuz), instituted on 13 July AD 1934 by President Paul von Hindenburg of the Weimar Republic. It was the first, as well as the sole, officially sanctioned and nationwide service commemorative decoration established in Germany following the conclusion of the First World War. Prior to this, various commemorative badges for First World War veterans had been issued independently by the former constituent states or private veterans’ associations; the institution of this cross aimed to confer unified national recognition upon all First World War participants and their sacrifices.

The decoration takes the form of a cross pattée with arms that broaden towards the extremities. The central medallion bears the dates ‘1914 1918’ encircled by a laurel wreath, with the overall design executed by Eugène Godet.

The reverse is plain and unadorned, bearing at the base the maker’s mark ‘R.V. 24 PFORZHEIM’, denoting Reichsverband Arbeitsgemeinschaft Heinrich Vogt, Pforzheim, which translates approximately as the ‘working consortium led by the Heinrich Vogt workshop of Pforzheim under the Reich Association’, with ’24’ likely representing the specific production group number. Under the influence of the corporatist policy of Gleichschaltung (co-ordination) at that time, the Reichsverband operated as an entity through which manufacturers across various sectors organised collaborative production.

The honour cross was issued in three distinct classes: the Cross with Swords (featuring two crossed swords situated between the limbs of the cross), conferred exclusively upon frontline combat veterans; the Cross without Swords, awarded to non-combatant military personnel who served on the home front or in logistical roles; and the Black Cross (without swords and with a chemically blackened finish), bestowed upon the widows and parents of service personnel killed in action, deceased from wounds, or missing during the conflict. The decoration was suspended from a ribbon featuring the Imperial colour scheme of alternating black, white, and red stripes, with an inverted colour configuration utilised for the next-of-kin version. Conferment of the Hindenburg Cross was subject to rigorous official vetting, primarily granted to living veterans or the bereaved families of those who had served in the German Imperial Armed Forces and associated wartime organisations. By the time applications ceased in the AD 1940s, more than eight million crosses had been conferred in total, the vast majority of which comprised the combatant class with swords.

物件編號: M543-3

年代: 公元 1934-1945 年

材質: 青銅

來源: Teutoburger Münzauktion GmBH 2025

這是一枚1914/1918年世界大戰榮譽十字勳章（Ehrenkreuz des Weltkrieges 1914/1918），通稱興登堡十字紀念章（Hindenburgkreuz），由威瑪共和國帝國總統保羅·馮·興登堡於公元1934年7月13日設立，是一戰結束後德國官方設立的第一個，也是唯一一個全德統一的一戰服役紀念章。在此之前，各類一戰老兵紀念章多由各舊邦國或私人退伍軍人協會自行頒發，該章的設立旨在以國家名義統一表彰所有一戰參與者及其犧牲奉獻。

該章呈十字型，各臂漸寬。中央圓盤內標註年份「1914 1918」並環繞月桂葉冠，整體設計由尤金·戈德(Eugene Godet)完成。

背面光平，底部刻有製造商「R.V. 24 PFORZHEIM」，即「Reichsverband Arbeitsgemeinschaft Heinrich Vogt, Pforzheim」，約可譯為「(直屬於)帝國同業公會、普福爾茨海姆的海因里希·福格特工坊(所牽頭負責的)工作聯合體(生產組)」，24可能是生產組的編號。帝國同業公會為在當時的法團主義「一體化」(Gleichschaltung)政策影響下，各領域生產商所組織的生產協同單位。

勳章共分為三個版本：佩劍版(十字四臂的角隅帶雙劍交錯於專門授予前線作戰老兵；無劍版授予在後方或後勤服役的非戰鬥軍事人員；黑色版(無劍且表面經發黑處理)則授予一戰陣亡者、傷亡失蹤者的遺孀與父母。佩戴綬帶為黑、白、紅三色相間的帝國配色，遺屬版綬帶顏色配置則相反。興登堡十字勳章的申請須經官方嚴格審查，主要向曾服役於德意志帝國武裝部隊及相關戰時機構的在世人員或遺屬發放。截至公元1940年代停止受理為止，該勳章合計頒發超過八百萬枚，其中絕大多數為佩劍的前線作戰版。