Request for help to identify old lapel / hat pin

[FirstGreenIsGold]

Does anyone know what kind of pin this would be? What country? Military of some sort?

I don't have a clue, except that it looks like it's silver and it looks quite old.

[cornishmaid1961]

It looks Norwegian with the flag and it's the type of lion they used on some of their old stamps if that's any help.

[Oldandintheway]

The 925S is Sterling silver, & the crossed rifles may indicate military?

(added) - Does AF = Air Force???

[FirstGreenIsGold]

It looks Norwegian with the flag and it's the type of lion they used on some of their old stamps if that's any help.

Thanks Becky. We were guessing Norway too, so it's good to hear that you think so as well.

[FirstGreenIsGold]

The 925S is Sterling silver, & the crossed rifles may indicate military?

(added) - Does AF = Air Force???

I don't know about the AF ... I can't seem to find a reference other than the silver part. We were thinking that the crossed rifles might be military / infantry.

We both did some googling, but I've not found one like this old pin.

Thanks, Oldandintheway.

[Shesawaya38485]

I was only going to take a "short break" until I saw this and couldn't resist a good "treasure hunt" - lol!!

The "925 S" is for .925 sterling silver.

That type of "C" clasp was used from the Victorian Era up into the 1930's. The pin extends well beyond the clasp and that was common around the turn of the century (1900) and became shorter as time went on.

The "AF" could either be a date code or a maker's mark. OLD - I doubt the "AF" stands for Air Force if you go by the date of the pin back style. Without checking my dates, I'm pretty sure no country really had an air force at the turn of the century and when they did, I think the insignia usually included some type of wings. They might have had Hot Air Balloon Corps but I think rifles on their insignia might have seemed like bad luck - LOL!

I'm fairly certain it is a military insignia pin and being made of sterling silver would probably have been given to an officer. Pot metal would have been used for enlisted personnel. Metal insignia are generally small enameled pins denoting branch of service, unit within a branch or some type of accomplishment by the individual.

The shield, lion & crown are more consistent with British or Scandanavian symbols rather than US military symbols. My next step would be to see what military units were active in Great Britian and the Scandanavian Countries around 1900 + or - 20 and try to find insignia with lions on shields. The crown might indicate "The Royal Army" of a country. The crossed rifles indicate infantry/artillery as opposed to navy.

That would be my next step if I didn't have to go feed the critters but maybe that will give you some ideas on where to do some more searching.

Let me know if you find anything else out - oh, how and where did you acquire it?

[Shesawaya38485]

This is absolutely the best site I have seen on Silver Marks. The countries like Denmark & Norway fall under the World category and seemed to have similar marks as yours. http://www.925-1000.com/index.html

[cornishmaid1961]

I can't find one exactly like yours but it might be something similar to this ?

https://axis101.bizland.com/NorwegianAwards01.htm

[FirstGreenIsGold]

[QUOTE=Shesawaya38485;1676120 how and where did you acquire it?[/QUOTE]

Thanks for all that information, Shesawaya38485. I appreciate that you took to time to respond. Lots for me to look at. I really don't know where I got the pin. But, someone somewhere might find it to be a part of their family history, if I list it.

[FirstGreenIsGold]

I can't find one exactly like yours but it might be something similar to this ?

https://axis101.bizland.com/NorwegianAwards01.htm

Yes, I haven't been able to find any images of a pin like this one yet either. Thanks for looking.