WWI British National War Savings Committee Badge

WWI British National War Savings Committee Badge – J.A. Wylie & Co. London (Condition: Very Fine)This fascinating and 100% authentic 20mm square brass lapel badge represents the British National War Savings Committee, established in 1916 to raise government funds during the First World War. The obverse displays an exquisite, undamaged black enamel border decorated with contemporary currency symbols—reflecting the "15'6" investment cost for a war certificate and its "£1" maturity value—surrounding a prominent central swastika. While this symbol looks highly provocative to the modern eye, it carries a fascinating history: in 1916, the British government utilized the swastika in its ancient, traditional meaning as a universal token of good luck and prosperity to motivate citizens to save money for the war effort, a design that was hastily abandoned in the 1930s when Hitler claimed the symbol. The reverse houses its strictly period-original horizontal safety pin assembly and is deeply stamped with the clear manufacturer mark J.A. WYLIE & CO. LONDON alongside the registration mark REG.