Unidentified pin badge

[MB21857]

I have stumbled upon this great site whilst having yet another go at identifying this badge and really hope that your members can come up with the answer.

This pin badge is really bugging me!
I live in England and I aquired this many, many years ago and have been trying to identify it since.
It has been pictured on a dedicated badge collecting site for a couple of years, but no identification.
I have even sent pictures to the Victoria and Albert museum in London (who have a metal artifact identification service) but they haven't replied.
I guess it's not worth a lot but to just put an event or society name to this would really mean a lot to me.

It's around 1 5/8" (42mm) diameter at its widest, probably made of Cupro-Nickel or similar and has (to me at any rate) a 1930's look to it.
I guess the quadrant shape was intended for an engraved name.
On the left of the flaming torch we seem to have old churches and buildings and to the right an industrial building.
The clasped hands in the foreground seem so important to its purpose, they look quite slender, certainly not the hands of a steelworker or miner. Could they be female?
I wonder whether it could be German, the buildings on the left do not look English, to me it has that 'Teutonic' look of the 1930's.
The back is totally plain with just a simple pin and clasp.

 

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[pepperj]

It looks like a labor pin.

 

[nsdq]

Olympics ?

 

[Subterranean]

I see old world hamlet on the left, followed by enlightenment (torch), and then a city of full industry on the right, with the handshake symbolizing the acceptance of the transition. Wow...that was deep even for me... It is a beauty and truly must be labor party related, as mentioned above. Good luck, Sub

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

I think Subterranean's interpretations of the details are accurate. I must mention specifically, that particular form of torch symbolizes the Light Of Knowledge (or Enlightenment). It is seen in several other Education-related emblems.

Also, MB21857, I think your guess is correct that one of the hands is a female hand -- slender fingers with long fingernails. Perhaps the handshake represents welcoming women into the modern industrial Labor-force.

By the way... welcome to T-Net's "What-Is-It?" forum, the best place on the internet for getting unknown objects identified. Although even this forum's ID-helpers don't know everything, they seem to solve the mysteries more often than any other website I know of.

 

[MB21857]

Thank you all for your input. I can see this is probably the best site on the 'net' for this sort of thing - fascinating!!!
Thanks for welcoming me to the site TheCannonBallGuy, I can see that perhaps only one of the hands is female - only just noticed it - and I've owned it for about 35 years!!!
The phrase "Labor pin" or to us 'Labour' and the issuing of such is unknown in the UK, why and to whom were these given? Were these given to anyone, or would you have to do something special to merit one?
I guess there must be an equivalent here but I wouldn't know what it would be called. Say "Labour pin" to the average Brit and they would think it's something to do with the British Labour Party i.e. the party in opposition to the Conservative Party in government here at the moment.

 

[Frankyg]

I think the term is associated with Trade Unions in the USA

 

[Red-Coat]

Just tidying up some blasts from the past (including some very ancient ones), largely for the benefit of anyone searching the site for information.

Interesting find. The tall tower building at the left is the “Belfry of Bruges” (in Belgium), one of the city’s most prominent landmarks, together with other architecture of the city and what appear to be factories or power stations at the right.

Essentially the same item was sold for 25 euros ($27) on a European medal auction site with the listing description: “Unknown engraver - Two entwined hands with a torch and the belfry of Bruges - 40 mm, silver”. The back wasn’t shown, but there was no mention of it having a pin (scroll down to Lot No. 141):

https://www.medaille.be/veiling2.html

I would take the torch as a generic representation of liberty (nothing to do with the Olympics) and that this is some kind of celebratory item for the liberation of the city from German occupation without having suffered significant damage to its architecture or infrastructure. Bruges was liberated twice: In 1918 by a combined force of Belgian, British and French troops; then again in 1944 by Canadian forces. On both occasions it emerged from war virtually unscathed.

My guess would be that the ‘handshake’ is more indicative of the partnership of Belgian forces with British and French Forces in WWI rather than the ‘solo’ effort of the Canadians in WWII. I visited Bruges a while ago and, although there are celebratory bronze plaques for the second liberation, they almost invariably include a maple leaf as part of the design in recognition of Canada’s achievement.

 

[invent4hir]

Red-Coat, thank you for tidying up this and a host of other ancient threads. They are always educational!