SOLD WW2 German Demjansk Campaign Shield Army . GO6188

WW2 German Demjansk Campaign Shield. Army (Heer) field-grey wool backing material. Die cast sheet metal construction with silver wash finish. Backing plate and all prongs appear to still be in place under the paper backing material. Worn condition.

Additional Notes: The WW2 German Demyansk Shield (Ärmelschild Demjansk) was a WW2 German military badge awarded to Wehrmacht personnel who fought in the Demyansk pocket on the Eastern Front in the early months of 1942. The pocket of German troops had been encircled and cut off by the Red Army around Demyansk (Demjansk), south of Leningrad, and was successfully defended with the aid of an airbridge. The shield was instituted in April of 1943.

The Demjansk shield was die-struck and typically produced in silver-washed zinc and later in plain zinc. It features at its apex an eagle with swooped down wings clutching a laurel wreath. This is flanked by two log pillboxes with gun ports, with “DEMJANSK” in capitals below. The central portion of the shield features a head-on single engine aircraft behind two crossed swords and, at the base, the year “1942”. Two minor variations of the aircraft’s propeller exist with either a curved or straight propeller.

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