Badge
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A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and fire), a sign of legitimate employment or student status, or as a simple means of identification. They are also used in advertising, publicity, and for branding purposes.
Badges can be made from metal, plastic, leather, textile, rubber, etc., and they are commonly attached to clothing, bags, footwear, vehicles, home electrical equipment, etc. Textile badges or patches can be either woven or embroidered, and can be attached by gluing, ironing-on, sewing or applique.
Badges have become highly collectable: in the UK, for example, the Badge Collectors' Circle has been in existence since 1980.[1]
In the military, badges are used to denote the unit or arm to which the wearer belongs, and also qualifications received through military training, rank, etc. Similarly, youth organizations such as scouting and guiding use them to show group membership, awards and rank.
History
Badges were as popular as jewellery in the
From the livery badge, various badges of service evolved, worn by officials, soldiers and servants. In the British Army a metal (today often plastic) cap badge denoting the soldier's regiment became standard by the 17th century, as in most European armies (though not always navies). By the 19th century a badge was an almost invariable part of any uniform, including school uniforms, which in the UK usually still feature the school's badge in cloth on the breast pocket of the jacket or blazer.
Various uses
One of the best-known badges is the typically star-shaped
The BBC children's programme Blue Peter also awards its own "Blue Peter badge" to members of the public who appear on the show. These are highly collectable as they cannot be bought—except from people who have been awarded one and wish to sell it.
Case badges are thick, about 3 mm (0.12 in) deep, 3-by-3-centimetre (1.2 in × 1.2 in)
In the United States, the badges used by
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Police Badge, Greenville, North Carolina, presented to the Mayor, William J. Hadden
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The badge of an Assistant District Attorney in Genesee County, NY.
In
In Japan, lawyers are often issued lapel pin badges which serve as an identification tool in court, or during their normal course of work. Since lawyers are vested with special powers by law, such as the power to compel government agencies to provide information, these badges provide a quick way for lawyers to identify themselves as such.[5]
Bibliography
- Attwood, Philip, Badges. London: British Museum Press, 2004.
- Attwood, Philip, Acquisitions of badges (1978-1982). London : British Museum Occasional Paper 55, 1985.
- Attwood, Philip, Acquisition of badges (1983-1987). London: British Museum Occasional Paper 76, 1990.
- Bible, Don. Warrant Discs of the Gestapo & Kripo, 1934-1946. Morristown, Tenn: Published privately by the author, 1991.
- C.G. Braxmar Co., Inc. (New York, N.Y.). Illustrated Catalogue of Fire & Police Dept. Badges. New York: The company, 1921.
- Dinnes, Andrew Ross. Border War Badges: A Guide to South African Military & Police Badges, 1964-1994. 2011.
- Houser, Todd R., Norm Sorenson, and Ronald L. Myers. A History of the City of Long Beach, California Police Badge. [Long Beach, Calif.]: Long Beach Police Historical Society, 2005.
- Mauldin, William. State Police & State Highway Patrol Badge Guide. Meadows of Dan, Va: William Mauldin Productions, 1999.
- Taylor, Michael Bradley, and Victor Legender Wilkinson. Badges of Office: An Illustrated Guide to the Helmets and Badges of the British Police 1829 to 1989. Henley-on-Thames: Hazell, 1989.
See also
- Badge of honor
- Badge of shame
- Builder's plate
- Campaign button
- Charity badge
- Debadging
- Diadem
- Heraldic badge
- Identification badge
- Lapel pin
- Military badges of the United States
- Name plate
- Name tag
- Nursing pin
- Police memorabilia collecting
- Stinking badges
- Web badge
References
- ^ "The history of the Badge Collectors Circle". Retrieved 2011-08-02.
- ^ Mozilla Open Badges Project
- ^ "Badges for Lifelong Learning". Retrieved 2012-11-20.
- ^ "About the Badges for Lifelong Learning initiative". Retrieved 2012-11-20.
- ^ Jones, Colin P. A. (2015-02-23). "Badges of honor: what Japan's legal lapel pins really mean". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- Setchfield, Frank (1986). Official Badge Collector's Guide: From the 1890s to the 1980s. London: Longman. ISBN 0-582-89306-2
External links
- Media related to Badges at Wikimedia Commons
- Badges in the Staten Island Historical Society Online Collections Database
- Badge Collectors' Circle