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Your Price: $ 12.50
Item Number: 1918 |
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Circa: WWI Manufacturer: Military Pins
These are two antique military pins from WWI which came out of the same home and therefore were likely worn together by the original owner (we guarantee that these came out of the same home and were not "paired" by us for sale; these were the only military pins this home had, they had belonged to a relative of the home owner). The original owner apparently served in the Army Infantry since one is a crossed rifles pin. We have read that this pin was worn by Infantry Officers, but we are not military experts and don't know that for certain. The second pin just shows 3 capital letters, "H.D.R." These pins would have been worn on a military uniform, collar or hat. Supporting the age of these pins is the fact that these came out of a home along with other items from the World War I era (The World War or first World War).
We tried to research on the internet what the H.D.R. abbreviation stood for and could not find an exact reference. The "R." could stand for "Regiment". We found references for "HD" to mean "Harbor Defense" and "H-Dr" to mean "Horse-drawn". So we don't know if the H.D.R. was short for Harbor Defense Regiment or Horse-drawn Regiment or something else, but certainly it stood for something relative to the U.S. Infantry (U.S.A. Infantry). Perhaps the H.D.R. was some sort of marksman pin in the Infantry? Since these two pins date to WWI (which occurred from 1914-1918), they are historical pieces over 75 years old, and actually probably 98-102 years old, so definitely antique pins.
These two military insignia pins are made of metal, most likely bronze or brass, but we don't know for certain. A magnet does not stick to either vintage pin (which would be the case with brass or bronze). The crossed rifles pin measures about 2 1/8 inches greatest width x about 1 inch in height. The H.D.R. pin measures about 1 1/2 inches in width x 1/2 inch in height. Both old pins have the old "C" clasp open-ended closure on the backside. For each the straight bar piece on the backside can be unhooked from the C clasp and rehooked. This is very easily done on the H.D.R. pin (almost too easily done). On the rifle pin the bar fits very tightly into the C clasp but can be unhooked with a bit of a push/pull. We have not attempted to clean or polish these pins and are selling as is/as found. We do not see any manufacturer or country markings on these pins.
We've provided 8 images to show these two pins together, separately, with a quarter for size comparison, front and backsides, and from differing angles. The camera lighting causes some white "hot spot" reflections on the metal surfaces. Please use the zoom feature to examine closely.
Good vintage used condition but not mint, with evidence of age/use/wear/storage wear. On both pins you can see the topside surface wear in the images, which includes discoloration, darkened spots/areas or tarnishing, and what seems like the topside surface has worn away or flaked off in spots, particularly on the H.D.R. pin. Both pins show some bending or curving (the rifles are not straight and flat, and the letters, particularly the "R." are curved/slightly bent), probably from much attaching and taking these off from uniforms, as expected for used older pins. There are some scratches/handling wear on both sides, as well as discoloration/tarnishing on the backsides of both pins. But all of this supports the age of these pieces and their vintage/antique look/appeal.
Neat to find a set or pair of WWI military pins coming out of the same home, which can make them an interesting addition to any collection of military pins or one related to World War I or the U.S. Infantry in general. |
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