Original German Pre-WWII "Amt des Schiedsmanns" Office of the Arbitrator Emailleschild Porcelain Enameled Steel Sign - 10" x 12"

Original item: One-of-a-kind. This is a wartime heavy iron vaulted building identification Emailleschild (enameled sign). This is a very robust well-made sturdy sign, with typical construction details of German government signage, featuring a coating of porcelain enamel over a steel backing, with attachment holes in the corners. It is white with a black order, and there is a large "Prussian Eagle" over the following text:

Amt
des
Schiedsmanns

This translates to "Office of the Arbitrator", and this was a position that existed prior to the NSDAP period, and continued to exist throughout. Later versions of this sign would have the early NSDAP "Prussian Eagle" with swords and lightning bolts in its talons, and a swas on its breast, and after that the eagle was replaced with the standard NSDAP Reichsadler. These signs are rare and desirable, particularly the early style.

Condition is Very good, with the porcelain enamel retained well over 95%, with only some small areas around the attachment holes and an area on the top left missing the enamel. There are some scratches, scuffs, and other damage, as well as some stains from use and storage, but overall it's really a great example. The sign is rectangular and measures approximately 10"W by 12"H. There is no maker mark on the back, which is mostly covered with black enamel, showing some areas where the enamel has flaked and the steel rusted.

Signs of this nature were quickly destroyed after the fall of Germany in April 1945, ones like this were salvaged by USGIs who wanted to bring home a trophy of war. Therefore, finding authentic (beware many fakes) porcelain building signs from the Third Reich has become quite difficult in the collector's market.