H&H M37 pinback officer's EGA

[ReverendJake]

I just picked this up at a little antique shop while I was visiting Long Beach Island. The pictures don't do it justice, it's stunning. I read that these were sweetheart pieces. Then I read that they were for the shoulder knots. I thought that it was just someone trying to find a way to make themselves feel better about purchasing a sweetheart piece by mistake... until I saw that there are both right and left facing versions of this pin. My theory is that the pinback H&H EGA's were made pre-war and possibly early war and early war for the shoulder knots, but as the war progressed and the wear of the mess dress uniform became more and more limited, they sold what remained in stock as sweetheart pieces.

[ReverendJake]

Back

[ReverendJake]

Here is the right side (unfouled, though)

 

This is not mine, I found it on the forum. I'm sorry, but I can't remember whose it was.

[ReverendJake]

Sweetheart or not. I think I've been bitten by the EGA bug!

[normaninvasion]

The first one you posted is a sweetheart piece. It is the type worn on an officers dress cap, note: larger size than the collar emblem you show and the fouled anchor. Pin arrangement, from wing to fluke is the sweetheart indicator.It alsomaybe slightly smaller than a standard cover emblem. I believe this variation made its appearance in 1942? Jeff

[ReverendJake]

The first one you posted is a sweetheart piece. It is the type worn on an officers dress cap, note: larger size than the collar emblem you show and the fouled anchor. Pin arrangement, from wing to fluke is the sweetheart indicator.It alsomaybe slightly smaller than a standard cover emblem. I believe this variation made its appearance in 1942? Jeff

I'd have to find a ruler, but I'm fairly certain it's for the collar. Most of the H&H cover EGA's I've seen have a space between the eagle's legs.

[teufelhunde.ret]

....Then I read that they were for the shoulder knots.

....until I saw that there are both right and left facing versions of this pin.

....My theory is that the pinback H&H EGA's were made pre-war and possibly early war and early war for the shoulder knots, but as the war progressed and the wear of the mess dress uniform became more and more limited, they sold what remained in stock as sweetheart pieces.

The style of H&H emblem you show in the first post is from war time production, a sweetheart piece with molded anchor rope. Jeff is correct, 42 is when they showed up in sweetheart; service and dress model. They replaced the older M37 H&H emblem(s) that were in production to comply w/ the new M37 reg's. See here: http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/7695-hh-1937-62-officer-dress-collar-insignia/

 

The collar emblem you show is also a sweetheart, here is the reverse (from EGA-DOG). Hard to see, its screwpost has been milled down.

 

Here is a legit set of H&H war time 40's pinback collar emblems: http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/143290-ww2-officer-egas-what-is-special-about-these/

[usmcaviator]

The first one you posted is a sweetheart pin. It is often (but not always) the same size as collar emblems, and can be found fouled and unfouled, molded chain and seperately applied chain. There are many variations. I believe that the sweethearts were primarily made from leftover stock in the 1960's (when the Corps switched to the modern day insignia). Epaulette sets do exists in this version (they are tough to find), in pin back form, and they should be unfouled. By the time this version hit the streets in 1943/1944, the dress epaulettes were barely used (wartime). The standard sterling dress 1937 pattern (HH and Meyer) you can find in pin back form for epaulettes, the Meyer version being much tougher to find.

 

S/F,

Mike