Pontiac9999
Active member
I heard that some M1843 wappens were cast and was wondering if anyone would happen to have a picture of the backside of a plate like this?
Adam
Adam
Backside of a m1843 cast wappen
- Thread starter Pontiac9999
- Start date
Here is an a Preussen sand-casted Adler adopted in 1842. This is the type of Adler with the large head and Schwarzenegger arms. This helmet eagle has been sand-cast so it lacks cut and file marks on the edges. The muted detail is not even close to the later die-stamped eagles.This Adler has been ground-out a somewhat to reduce weight. Being cast, it is still hefty at 107g, compared to a standard 30g die struck 1895 eagle. The Deutschmark Gesellschaft für Heereskunde describes how the first 1842 cast Prussian Adler were made.
(5. pages 43, 44)
eagles made of cast brass and those that had been pressed and cut out of sheet brass. The cast eagles were first made flat in the so-called hearth casting method, that is, they were made with a mold that was open. Such a mold is obtained by pressing the model of an eagle into the molding sand. So only the front side of the eagle is molded, the back side remains smooth. After cooling, the eagle was then bent into the helmet head shape.”
Concurrently eagles were sand-cast with a back pressed into the metal to reduce weight.
The two feather-bolts on the exterior of the eagle remain, however, If you look at the photos of the reverse, you will see that these (normally removable) bolts have been soldered making them permanent. If you squint hard at the front of the eagle, near the cloverleaf on the left wing, you’ll see a little tiny pin and then squint harder and you’ll see another little pin and the pattern is clear: it had a post 1860 Fatherland Bandeau added. It must have snapped or had some other mishap, as it was removed and the holes pinned. Hard to believe this old Adler was upgraded when there were so many more beautiful die stamped eagles available.
On the reverse we see that the head has snapped off but very fortunately it is the actual head. The blob of solder is a very poor repair, but at least the head remains. On the reverse you can see the small cracks and breaking, as this little Adler is 180 years old, and the metal is becoming brittle. I’m reasonably sure that if I dropped it, it would explode.
(5. pages 43, 44)
eagles made of cast brass and those that had been pressed and cut out of sheet brass. The cast eagles were first made flat in the so-called hearth casting method, that is, they were made with a mold that was open. Such a mold is obtained by pressing the model of an eagle into the molding sand. So only the front side of the eagle is molded, the back side remains smooth. After cooling, the eagle was then bent into the helmet head shape.”
Concurrently eagles were sand-cast with a back pressed into the metal to reduce weight.
The two feather-bolts on the exterior of the eagle remain, however, If you look at the photos of the reverse, you will see that these (normally removable) bolts have been soldered making them permanent. If you squint hard at the front of the eagle, near the cloverleaf on the left wing, you’ll see a little tiny pin and then squint harder and you’ll see another little pin and the pattern is clear: it had a post 1860 Fatherland Bandeau added. It must have snapped or had some other mishap, as it was removed and the holes pinned. Hard to believe this old Adler was upgraded when there were so many more beautiful die stamped eagles available.
On the reverse we see that the head has snapped off but very fortunately it is the actual head. The blob of solder is a very poor repair, but at least the head remains. On the reverse you can see the small cracks and breaking, as this little Adler is 180 years old, and the metal is becoming brittle. I’m reasonably sure that if I dropped it, it would explode.
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Pontiac9999
Active member
Wow, thank you so much Tony !!! This is highly informative and much appreciated!
I picked up an eagle like this and it does match with everything you are saying. The one I picked up though has the bandeau which looks like thin stamped metal. Also there's a weird plate on the back with some numbers.
Adam
I picked up an eagle like this and it does match with everything you are saying. The one I picked up though has the bandeau which looks like thin stamped metal. Also there's a weird plate on the back with some numbers.
Adam
Pontiac9999
Active member
Very nice. That is a two piece casting (top and bottom), with the Bandeau added after 1860.
Sandmann
Well-known member
In my experience, you can recognize the cast helmet eagles from the front at the base of the wings. There is always more or less a small gap between the body and the first flight feather, whereas in the pressed helmet eagle M1842 the unnecessary material remains there. Reworking these small gaps would have been far too time-consuming and therefore too expensive. So I think this is a good indicator of a cast helmet eagle. At least I don't know anyone who didn't have this characteristic.
I thought I should attach these Photos since 2 of the helmets shown in previous post are in my possession. Each one has a unique configuration of posts and additions/repairs All these plates hang on early Kurassier helmets. The last photo Hopefully captures the frosting that is still on about 80% of this wappen, seems rare.
Attachments
Wonderful! Keeping every one of these excellent photos.
