When the modern German Bundeswehr military force was established in 1949, it included many WWII veterans. They were not allowed to wear their WWII awards. However in 1957 the German Government allowed wearing of WWII awards provided that they didn’t include swastikas and weren’t political awards (such as those made just for the SS and SA). New designs were made that didn’t include the swastika. This is an example of the “57er” version of the War Merit Cross Second Class. It is an early example because it is made of tombak brass and the quality is on a par with awards produced during WWII. This example is in great shape with good finish and clean 25mm ribbon. Condition I