40th Contemporary History Auction

Bidding on 1479 lots has ended on 15th November 2020. 92% of all lots sold

1019 |

Major Heinrich Höfer - German Cross in gold "1" with case

Major Heinrich Höfer - German Cross in gold "1" with case

LOT 50-1019
SOLD
Auction ended        15th November 2020  |  03:24 pm CET
RESULT
2.600,00
EXCL. BUYER’S PREMIUM: 22,50 %

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DESCRIPTion, DETaILS & Photos
SAVE FOR LATER
PERIOD 1918 — 1945
COUNTRY Deutschland
MATERIAL
DIMENSIONS
MAKER
WEIGHT
LOT 50-1019
EAN 2000000512747
LOT 50-1019
PERIOD 1918 — 1945
COUNTRY Deutschland
EAN 2000000512747
MATERIAL
DIMENSIONS
MAKER
WEIGHT
PERIOD 1918 — 1945
COUNTRY Deutschland
LOT 50-1019
MATERIAL
DIMENSIONS
EAN 2000000512747
MAKER
WEIGHT
Germany 1918 - 1945


Description

German Cross in gold to Major im Generalstab Heinrich "Heinz" Höfer (1911-1996).

Made by Deschler & Sohn, München. "1" maker marked to the pin. A nice heavy type. All four original rivets in place. Multi-piece construction. Major Höfer removed the swastika after 1945 so that he could wear it in the German Bundeswehr. Later, a swastika was professionally reattached. No chips. 

Weight: 68.5 gr.

With the original case of issue. A golden line runs around the outside of the top. Black inlay. White silk lining. The case opens and closes correctly. A nice set!

Major Höfer served as commanding officer with II./Kampfgeschwader 55. He continued his military service with the German Bundeswehr from 15.12.1955 until 30.09.1971. His last military rank was Oberst im Generalstab.

- Luftwaffe Honor Goblet on 3. November 1941

- German Cross in Gold on 16. July 1942

- Knight's Cross on 3. September 1943

- Oak Leaves on 18. November 1944

Please note all items of Major Höfer in our 40. Contemporary Auction.  


Condition
2
Historical information

NAME

German Cross in Gold

DATE OF INSTITUTION

28. September 1941 as a military order in two grades. A special grade, the German Cross in Gold with Diamonds was planned and prototypes were made.

AWARD CRITERIA

The golden grade was awarded for multiple exceptional deeds of bravery or leadership and the silver grade for exceptional deeds in troop leadership. The award of the Iron Cross 1. Class, the Spange 1. Class , or the War Merit Cross 1. Class was a pre-requisite for the awarding of the German Cross. The German Cross was located above the Iron Cross 1. Class and War Merit Cross 1. Class but below the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross, respectively the Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross.

MANUFACTURERS

The German Cross was awarded by the decision of the supreme commanders of the three army branches.

The German Cross was produced by five known manufacturers and maybe one or two not yet known companies. The known manufacturers are Deschler & Sohn, who designed the cross, Gebrüder Godet, C.E. Juncker, C.F. Zimmermann, and Otto Klein.

Early crosses are unmarked and from the end of 1942/early 1943 onwards, the crosses were marked with the Präsidialkanzlei numbers of the companies.

Due to the heavy and slightly bulky nature of the award, a cloth version was authorized in June 1942. The cloth version can be found with eight different cloth backing colors: field gray (army), dark blue (navy), blue-gray (LW), black (tank forces), stone gray (assault gun), olive (Africa Heer), light khaki (Africa LW), and white (summer uniform).

AWARD NUMBERS

Accurate numbers are not known but the closest estimation based on surviving documents are 25,964 for the gold grade and 2,471 for the silver grade. A known total of eleven soldiers were awarded both grades.

The crosses were mainly stored and registered at the Präsidalkanzlei and were given out by this office. It is possible that smaller numbers were stored at the personnel offices of the three army branches.

AWARD DOCUMENTS

The Heer issued preliminary award documents in the format A5, followed by a larger (356 mm x 254 mm) formal document. The Luftwaffe and the Kriegsmarine never issued any preliminary documents, only the formal ones in the same size as the formal document of the Heer.

WEARING METHOD

The German Cross was worn at the right side of the uniform on the breast pocket.

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