WASP fifinella pin

[Art]

I am trying to get information about a Fifinella pin I have.

I have gotten a few opinions but nothing definitive, so I am hoping someone out there can help. If you have any info please post it.

So far possibilities include: graduation pin, sweetheart pin, Order of Fifinella pin.

 

 

Here is a post that discusses the pin I now have:

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/275265-sterling-wasp-wings-sterling-fifi-atc-pin-clutchback/?hl=fifi

 

Here is a link to where Flying Tiger sold one listed as a graduation pin:

http://www.flyingtigerantiques.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=fta&Product_Code=z99hfw90016&Category_Code=08hfw

 

Here is a link to where Flying Tiger is selling one now:

http://www.flyingtigerantiques.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=fta&Product_Code=afwo20005wbf&Category_Code=

 

Here is one where it is shown as a sweetheart piece

http://www.ww2wings.com/wings/usaaf/usaafwasp.shtml

 

 

 

 

[wingman]

I probably can be only of little help. I am familiar with this pin, but do not own one. I've known WASP that had one among their personal belongings, but I never thought to ask when and how they acquired it. Among collectors, it is considered authentic, and hence usually commands a hefty price. That said, I am pretty certain that it was never official, and certainly not part of their uniform -- it may well not have been produced when their uniforms were in use -- through December 1944, when the program was disbanded.

 

We know now that the two patches commonly seen on eBay, and often sold at high-dollar prices -- one with the familiar Disney-designed Fifinella, and the other with the insect --, were never official, and as far as I can determine never worn by WASP (at least not in any of the many hundreds of photos I have examined). So what collectors often prize is no indication of an item's authenticity.

 

My feeling is that your pin, which is still worth having and might well have been produced during the wartime period, is a sweetheart pin. It has been widely reproduced (i.e. faked), and unlike yours, are virtually worthless. If you research the hallmark (which I cannot at the moment since I am away from my reference library), the history of that company might provide some clue as to when the pin was produced. If, for example, the company went out of business shortly after the war ended, it would, in my estimation, make your pin much more desirable and valuable.

 

Sorry not to have been able to help more. Hopefully, others can.

[Art]

I did just see in a June 1945 WASP Order of Fifinella newsletter they were selling Fifi pins (no picture of it) for $2