Pancraft WW2 navy officer hat device

[Flashlarue]

I've not seen a Pancraft hallmark before. The eagle and sheild are marked Sterling but the anchors aren't marked as to what metal they are. The eagle is beautifully detailed overall a gorgeous device.

[digi-shots]

btt

 

Any thoughts on this maker or time period?

[Basic Rifleman]

Agreed. Gorgeous Badge. It's a WWII "era" piece. There are several WWII confirmed Chief Petty Officer Insignia makers marked by Pancraft on the interwebs. A google search for "pancraft" "insignia" will give you much more to go by. I believe they were LA based and were around from the 1930's through WWII.

[digi-shots]

Thanks, I appreciate the info!

[5thwingmarty]

On Ron Burkey's https://www.flyingtigerantiques.com/ site he has several Pancraft items, and he indicates they were made by Robbins.  

[5thwingmarty]

Well I just found this on ebay.  I don't know if the connection has been shown before, but in any event it appears Pancraft was a trademark / hallmark used on items sold by Joseph Panitz & Co.  If the insignia are in the Robbins pattern I would presume that Robbins made them for Joseph Panitz.

 

 

[5thwingmarty]

Found this information at https://edmon.substack.com/p/megilla-memorial-day-issue?s=r

 

"In Los Angeles, if you wanted to look good before marching off to war, Joseph Panitz, was the man to see. Sometime in the 1920s Panitz had opened a tailor shop in downtown at 426 S. Spring St. where he made U.S. service uniforms.

With the approval of the U.S. government, he was allowed to make all the elements of a dress uniform, including the WWII hat shown above. To be fitted for a bespoke uniform required a fitting, and future officers from the Army, Navy and Marines would report to the Panitz shop to be measured.

Panitz, born in Poland in 1892, came to Los Angeles via New York with his wife, the Yiddish folksinger Feigele Panitz in 1921. A leading Labor Zionist, he was one of the founders of the Institute of Jewish Education.

Proud of his work, each of his hats was stamped with the slogan None Better.”

 

The company was still in business in at least the early 1940's.