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I am indebted to Chris Ransted (author of the excellent Bomb Disposal in World War II) for the image below. The cigarette case belonged to his grandfather, a printer and fire watcher at The Times in London. There are a great number of fake items featuring ARP badges (eBay has a few rogue sellers regularly slapping an ARP badge onto cigarette cases, vesta cases and lighters).  Original The Times ARP Badge Cigarette Case
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A large number of fake and reproduction items are up at auction at East Bristol Auctions on 22 May 2020. The description of most of the fake ARP badges says "unknown origin" and for the buyer to ensure they know what they are buying. A large number of lots are from the same militaria forger found on eBay. Included is another fake London Underground Zuckerman as well as a Straits Settlements ARP badge added to a Zuckerman. There is also a pair of faked splinter googles. There'sa fake GPO Warden helmet and a stencilled LCC Ambulance helmet. There is also a fake Women's Home Defence enamel and embroidered badge.
Amongst the other lots are other items regularly offered for sale on eBay by shysters - fake First World War airplane fabric, WW1 tank metal face masks and WW2 linen flags. Caveat emptor... This very smart group photograph was shared by the Chingford at War Facebook group. The date given was October 1944 but I'm more inclined towards it being a stand-down photo in May 1945. There's an interesting selection of insignia on display including the gentleman sat bottom right who has a wound stripe below his Incident Officer badge (he is a First World War veteran so this may be the red stripe). A few have five war service chevrons and instructor badges. Several have a diamond shaped badge. It could be one of the Fire Guard instructor badges but I'm doubtful HQ staff would undertake that course. If you know of an alternative to this please let me know. One of the gentleman standing appears to have the Royal Life Saving Society embroidered badge on the pocket of his battledress.  WW2 Chingford ARP Headquarters Staff Photo A new addition to list of fake enamel ARP lapel badges. Usually seller has listed this. Has all the same hallmarks of the fakes: acid staining for age, same rear, same old pin and clasp. Another fake to watch out for. See a complete list of the known fake ARP badges on the market.  Fake ARP Warden Westminster Enamel Lapel Badge Here's another of the fake ARP badges that gets listed on eBay every couple of months or so. This one doesn't even have the fake pin and clasp. It does have the acid staining to 'age' the badge and piss-poor enamelling. I now know what this is based on. It's a factory Fire Watcher badge. The fraudster has copied the design but added Rolls Royce and whatever R & R means is anyone's guess.
See a list of the current examples of fake ARP badges. Yet another fake variation of the Hong Kong ARP badge. This time using their copious supply of red and blue enamel we have this monstrosity. Always with the same fake features - acid dipping to age, crappy enamelling, the exact same pin fitting to rear. For more information see this page on ARP badges that lists all the currently known examples. UPDATE: the fake badge sold for £279. I'm utterly speechless...  Fake WW2 Hong Kong ARP Enamel Lapel Badge A nice photo of an ARP Warden officer (two narrow "old gold" yellow horizontal bars on upper sleeve). The warden is wearing the ARP Pattern 71 tunic jacket with ARP Pattern 72 skirt and beret with her silver ARP badge.  WW2 ARP Warden Officer Another fake ARP badge to add to the growing list of badges being sold as original on eBay. Featuring all the classic hallmarks of the fakes: acid staining, poor casting, identical pin and clasp. Previously sold by the same seller a few months ago. An absolute rip off.  Fake WW2 Coventry ARP First Aid Enamel Lapel Badge Yet more fake ARP enamel badges on eBay (see these links for more information - fakes and more fakes and yet more fakes). This time we have a reproduction / fake of a Straits Settlements ARP badge. It features all the common traits of these fake ARP badges: 1) Acid dipped to give the verdigris look, 2) Same poor quality pic fitting, 3) Knocked about front to give the appearance of age. Absolute garbage but the seller on eBay keeps offering this and several other fakes on a regular basis. If you did by mistake buy this os a similar badge get back onto eBay and send the badge back. It is not a WW2 badge.  Fake / Reproduction ARP Straits Settlements Enamel Badge Yet another example of the fake ARP enamel badges been sold on eBay (more examples here). This time for the London Housewives Service. Usually these badges are dipped in an acid solution to age them but this one has been left as made. The rear is the giveaway that this is part of the current spate of fake ARP badges being made. It has the exact same pin and also the stippling. The font to the front is also a modern style. The ARP is copied across several badges as well. This particular badge is based off a similar badge for the Bushbury Housewives Service. A comparison of the badges clearly shows the difference between the fakes and original.  Fake WW2 London Housewives Service ARP Enamel Badge A veritable avalanche of fake ARP and home front enamel badges are now reaching eBay. As previously described in this blog post the badges all follow the same style of manufacture. The ever-present green verdigris staining is thought to be caused by dipping the badges in an acid solution. The reason? To age the badge and also cover up the fact it was recently made. Every single badge has a pin fitting (and every pin fitting looks the same). The vast majority of badges produced during the war, and especially the factory and industrial badges were fitted with the half-moon lapel fitting (as they were mainly issued to men). It would appear that the prices paid for the badges is falling as avid collectors are now aware that these fake ARP badges have no provenance and are almost certainly modern reproductions. The latest fake ARP badges include: - A Straits Settlements coloured ARP badge.  Fake WW2 Straits Settlements ARP badge - BBC London ARP and Queen's Canteen ARP Badges. The BBC badge shares the same font found on the fake Rolls Royce ARP badge previously covered here. An example of the Queens Canteen badge is known but this fake shows the acid dip and pin common to all these fake badges.  Fake BBC London ARP badge and fake Queens Canteen ARP badge The simple answer appears to be yes. Over the past year a large number of fake ARP and home front badges have reached the market that have distinctly modern manufacturing processes on them. More fakes are being detected every week. The key pointers are: 1) verdigris on the back (which is probably from dipping the badge in acid of some sort), 2) all with pin attachment (most wartime badges, esp. ARP ones are lapel fitting), 3) no maker's mark (this is one of the key giveaways of being a fake), 4) a stippling to the rear where originals are often smooth and well finished, 5) modern letter fonts (letters are machine cut using modern day fonts). These fake ARP badges often have dings and marks to the front surface in an attempt to age the badges. The fake ARP badge fronts appear to be well made (the enamel is not up to the wartime standards though) but the backs all appear very similar. It's peculiar that if someone is going to the effort of faking industrial ARP badges then omitting to cast the rear correctly is somewhat odd. It is probably down to the reproducing manner being unable to copy makers' marks. The flip of this is that the badges are readily selling online and at auction houses. Most of the badges are selling for over £100 to £150. I have a collection of a few hundred WW2 Home Front badges and not a single one has this verdigris on the reverse. Other collectors have also noted that their badges are also without this colouration. A small sample of the fake ARP badges being reproduced are: 1 - A winged AVRO ARP badge. There is a triangular badge that is genuine (and without a maker mark) but the winged AVRO ARP badges all have the verdigris and poor pin manufacture. They are without maker's mark. Badges have sold on eBay fro between £100 and £150 and the badge has also been sold at an auction house.  Fake winged AVRO ARP badge 2 - Women's Home Defence shield. All original badges have the maker "Collins London" on rear and a sturdy brass pin. The fakes omit the maker mark and have a poor pin assembly. They also carry the verdigris. Selling on eBay for over £50.  Fake Women's Home Defence badge 3 - Austin Motor Works red ARP Controller badge. The original badge has a half-moon lapel fitting and maker's mark. The fakes all have a pin and no maker mark with verdigris to back (and sometime front). Several copies of this badge suddenly appeared on eBay in the last six months (date March 2020). Copies selling for over £100 on eBay.  Fake Austin Motor Works ARP Controller badge badge 4 - Rolls Royce R&R ARP badge. More of the same here with the back identical to other forgeries. One sold on eBay on 30 December 2019 for £260. Another almost identical badge was listed for sale on eBay on 15 March 2020.  Fake Rolls Royce ARP badge 5. Coventry ARP First Aid. Same pin, stippling and verdigris as the others.  Fake Coventry ARP First Aid badge 6. Handley Page Ltd ARP Badge. Same condition as others.  Fake Handley Page Ltd. ARP badge Others - Auxiliary Home Guard blue and red shields. These are poor fakes as the the front enamelling is much poorer than the examples above. The poor example on eBay was pulled after the seller was inundated with messages about the originality of the badge. - London Housewives Service. This circular badge is also now being faked. It is based on an original from a different area. - WW2 Free Czechoslovak Field Ambulance England badge. Another verdigris fake that omits the maker of Miller found on all the originals. This fake also has the completely wrong style of pin that is found on originals. Below an original on the left and a fake on the right.  Fake reproduction WW2 Free Czechoslovak Field Ambulance England badge An interesting letter appeared on eBay concerning Post Warden stripes. Sent to a Fire Station in Pinner, the letter (dated June 1943) outlines the badges received are the printed variety and not the material (I assume embroidered) type (that were hoped for it appears). The letter from H.U.D.C (Harrow Unitary District Council) details that existing badges will need to be returned when these are issued. Clearly the person receiving the badges wasn't overly enamoured with the printed badges and simply filed the letter. Slightly curious is the whilst the letter is dated 2 June 1943, the letter's date stamp is 25 May 1943.  Letter concerning Civil Defence badges of ranks  Post Warden and Deputy badges A London Post Warden (denoted by the three chevrons and six-pointed star on his sleeve) exchanges information with a member of the British Red Cross. The warden is also qualified as an Incident Officer. (Copyright BRCS IN2646)  WW2 Red Cross Member & London Civil Defence Post Warden With the Civil Defence services being stood down in May 1945, a large number of groups had 'stand down' group photographs taken. These provide a wealth of information on the insignia in use at the close of hostilities. The below photo shows a number of men that appear to be all in junior supervisory roles. The gentleman far left has the star above the three rank chevrons and five war service chevrons. There are a smattering of first aid badges on the right breast pockets but I cannot discern the area marking title (it looks to be quite short in length). As usual not everyone had a lanyard. A good number here are veterans of the first world war.  Civil Defence Stand Down Portrait 1945 A very good photo showing five ladies wearing the Gabardine Coat ARP Pattern 81 coat with red piped collars and the special CD badge made specifically for this coat. Appears they have also applied a St John Ambulance Association first aid training badge to their coats.  WW2 Civil Defence Mobile Unit Wearing Gabardine Coats A group shot of civil defence rescue personnel from Brynmawr (then in Breconshire). Of interest is that it appears that all the members have ARP red-on-dark blue breast pocket badges and then the old gold area marking below. This mix is known but quite rare to see.  WW2 Civil Defence Rescue Squad Members, Brynmawr A photograph taken outside of Buckingham Palace of Mr Saines and his wife. The ARP warden from Lewes was receiving the British Empire Medal (BEM). Photo dated as 1943. Interesting to see the embroidered beret badge.  Mr C G Saines Lewes ARP Warden, British Empire Medal One of the most frequently bought private purchase items was the side cap. Both men and women can be seen in period photos wearing the side cap. Most have applied their ARP badge to the front. This side cap is in dark blue almost black wool and is lined with the previous owner's name on a tag inside. To the front are two ARP buttons marked Cheney. There exists a large number of photos detailing a Civil Defence exercise that took place in Fulham in 1941. The photos are part of a series called The Reconstruction of "An Incident". Many of the photos are available on the IWM website. However, I keep coming across photos relating to this exercise which I had not seen before. This photo shows an officer in the Control Centre updating the Damage board. Of interest is the CONTROL shoulder title on his bluette overalls. You don't often see shoulder titles on overalls, and seeing CONTROL ones is quite rare.  WW2 ARP Control Officer - Fulham 1941 The National Air Raid Precautions Animals Committee (NARPAC) was created just before the outbreak of the Second World War to provide information to the general public about animal protection during air raids – both for pets, farm and working animals. The committee had representatives from various animal charities such as the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) and was organised and run through the Home Office’s Air Raid Precautions Department. The Home Office wrote and issued pamphlets advising people how they should look after their animals during raids. One such leaflet was “ARP Handbook No. 12 – Air Raid Precautions for Animals.” NARPAC also published a pamphlet called “Advice to Animal Owners”. It advised pet owners to either move their pets to the country or have them destroyed. This rather drastic advice had the result of causing over 400,000 pets to be destroyed in just one week in September 1939. Thousands of other animals were also dumped on RSPCA and PDSA doorsteps. Local NARPAC groups organised a register of animals within their area and registered pets were issued a numbered collar. Any animal lost during an air raid could then be hopefully reunited with their owner. Within the NARPAC structure were locally-based Animal Guards, volunteers mainly responsible for registering animals. They were managed by a Chief Guard with District Organisers above that. The Animal Service looked after farm and working animals via Animal Stewards. Qualified veterinary surgeons also worked for NARPAC. Members of NARPAC were identified by the wearing of a lapel badge and armband. The NARPAC symbol was also used on helmets and vehicles. In October 1939, the newly appointed Minister of Home Security, Herbert Morrison, requested that NARPAC create officially sanctioned measures to deal with animals under war conditions. NARPAC was now responsible for the care or destruction of animals in its charge. Vehicles bearing the NARPAC logo were allowed to run unhindered during air raids. With the blitz on British cities starting in the autumn of 1940 another period of pet euthanasia occurred. Due to financial irregularities towards the end of 1940 NARPAC began to lose the support of some societies (such as Battersea Dogs Home), with the RSPCA completely withdrawing its support in July 1941. In January 1945 NARPAC was officially closed and its remaining assets were passed to the PDSA. The BBC has a very good article concerning the pet cull.  Some of the more common National Air Raid Precautions Animals Committee (NARPAC) badges found The first person to be directly awarded the newly instituted George Cross was Civil Defence member Thomas Alderson. He was awarded the medal for leading the rescue of trapped civilians on three occasions in 1940. The other medal is the silver issue RSPCA Gallantry Medal. Of interest is the Instructor sleeve badge which also has ARPS above it. The ARPS was the Air Raid Precautions School and the badges just visible on his collar is probably the gold coloured ARPS Instructor badge.  Thomas Alderson GC - Civil Defence ARPS Instructor A spate of reproduction AVRO ARP insignia has recently been placed on eBay. The seller uses several accounts to sell similar items (always a good clue to fake items being fobbed off). There are no known photos of any AVRO ARP badge. It appears these reproductions copy some elements of this badge but they do not follow the font exactly (another good clue to them being fake).  Reproduction AVRO ARP armband, badge and collar tabs.  The same vendor is reproducing this AVRO ARP enamel lapel badge  Genuine original WW2 AVRO ARP badge with correct buttonhole fitting and maker's mark Finally, after reading through copious amounts of records I believe I have finally resolved one the long standing issues about the silver ARP badge. The C- and D-dated badges have a maker mark of "J.C." in a lozenge with snipped top corners. Across the web and also on some silversmith websites this is incorrectly identified as Jacques Cartier (which is utter toshas their hallmark looks nothing like those on the ARP badge). I recently got hold of a file from the National Archives which detailed that 'J.C.' was in fact a Royal Mint mark. I then emailed the Goldsmiths' library in London and they sent through the details of the mark being registered to a certain John Herbert McCutcheon Craig (first and last initial 'J.C.'). He was the Deputy Master and Comptroller of the Royal Mint from 1938. On the silver ARP badges that were manufactured in 1936 and 1937 the hallmark is 'R.J.' which was for Sir Robert Arthur Johnson the former Deputy Master and Comptroller of the Royal Mint who died in January 1938. This original Incident Officer (I.O.) sleeve badge cropped up on eBay recently. Is pretty good condition, the thread colour - Cambridge blue - is more easily identified on the rear of the badge here. Examples are getting somewhat scare and this example sold on eBay for £34.  Original WW2 ARP/Civil Defence Incident Officer (I.O.) Sleeve Badge |
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