Germany, Kriegsmarine. A Minesweeper War Badge, by Rudolf Karneth
(Kriegsabzeichen für Minensuch-, U-Boot-Jagd- und Sicherungsverbände). Constructed of gilded and silvered tombak, the obverse consisting of a circular oak leaf wreath, joined together at the bottom by ribbon, topped by a Kriegsmarine eagle clutching a mobile swastika, around a central depiction of a sea mine exploding, the reverse with a block binge and tapering vertical pinback meeting a round wire catch, maker marked “R.K.” for the firm of Rudolf Kartnerth, Gablonz, measuring 44.04 mm (w) x 55.52 mm (h), weighing 23.9 grams, with some loss of finish evident, a quintessential example of Karneth’s “eight wave” variation in better than very fine condition.

