IR 52

In several posts I have referred to badges as “non-existent”. These are the rarest pieces that I have not or hardly ever encountered yet. The protagonist of this post is a badge that does not really exist, a badge design presumably. Obviously, we are not talking about the very common badge, the one depicting the regimental owner Archduke Friedrich, but the depiction seen on the postcard.

There are a few postcards on which you can see a badge design. Or at least we think so. Because the lack of actual occurrence of the object could also mean that only very few pieces were made, and they have all disappeared or are hidden away in the depths of collections, forgotten. But every year one or two never-before-seen pieces turn up. Maybe this promising-looking 1917 cap badge will appear one day. Until then, we will have to make do with the plate badge published here and the otherwise very decorative, bayonet version that I presented here.