Germany, Wehrmacht. A War Merit Cross I Class, by Karl Gschiermeister GTRexclude Close Combat Clasp-Silver Grade -in

Close Combat Clasp-Silver Grade -in zinc

and secured shut using a standard single-hole belt buckle meeting reinforced holes

and is commemorated on page 257 of the Second World War Book of Remembrance

The interior of the shirt presents plain

Germany, Wehrmacht. A War Merit Cross I Class, by Karl Gschiermeister GTRexclude Close Combat Clasp-Silver Grade -in(Kriegsverdienstkreuz I. Klasse). Constructed of silvered tombak, consisting of a Maltese Cross, the obverse with pebbled arms and a central wreathed mobile swastika, the reverse with a barrel hinge and tapering vertical pinback meeting a flattened and rounded catch, the pinback maker marked with Prsidialkanzlei code 50 for Karl Gschiermeister, Vienna, measuring 48. 68 mm (w) x 48. 34 mm (h), weighing 16. 5 grams, in extremely fine condition.