What they really look like, and where they are?
What do we actually know?
- How many were produced= No
- Why they were awarded=No
- How many were awared=No
- When they were first awarded=No
- When they were last awarded=No
What we do know....
- Authors, dealers, auction house, collectors, all disagree on which ones are genuine and fake.
- They have been faked for at least 40 years.
- The Aurich-marked versions are cast fakes.
- The Gold plated/gilded/pained one I reviewed two years ago is a cast fake.
- The one I reviewed is identical the supposed ground dug ones as well as the others that are offered for sale by places like Weitze. (see above post on letter I & H)
Thats all we know right now.
The solution?
Anyone claiming to have a genuine one, needs to prove it is not the same as the two reviewed and exposed as cast fakes. Even good close-up images of just a few parts would solve that question. Like a close-up of the letters H and I on the body. And then maybe close-ups of other parts.
The claimers:
Anyone who owns one, claims it is original, yet fails to provide any detailed images, cannot be believed.
Only a detailed look at the actual item will provide clear answers.
Maybe, the original looks very similar to the ones exposed, and has been missed because it`s been lumped into the huge group of fakes.
Maybe only 12 were awared and all are lost?
Maybe only 124 were awarded and all are lost?
Maybe maybe maybe, and that`s all you will ever have until people LOOK at their items.