The PPA cap badge: astrolabe or armillary sphere?
PPA’s badge was designed by Peniakoff himself and made by silversmiths in Cairo and later in Rome. The unit always called it the astrolabe. What it actually shows is a slightly different instrument, and the records describe it both ways.
What was the PPA badge?
A silver badge showing a sphere of rings on an ornate stand, worn on a black beret. Peniakoff took the design from his own pre-war bookplate. The first badges were engraved by hand in brass by a silversmith in Cairo, later ones were made in silver, and after the unit moved to Italy they were made in Rome. PPA called it the astrolabe; strictly, a sphere of rings like this is an armillary sphere.
Designed by Popski
Unusually, PPA’s badge was designed by its own commander. According to Peniakoff, the device had been on his personal bookplate for years before the war, and he chose it as a fitting symbol for a unit that would have to navigate by the stars. The Imperial War Museum’s catalogue says the design reflected his personal taste.
The name stuck to the unit’s work, too: its seaborne landing behind the lines in June 1944 was called Operation Astrolabe.
How it was made
| Stage | Where | What |
|---|---|---|
| First | Cairo | Engraved by hand in brass by a local silversmith |
| Second | Cairo | Made in silver |
| Later | Rome | Made by a Roman silversmith after PPA moved to Italy |
Because the early badges were made by hand, no two are quite the same, and there is no single “correct” PPA badge. The Imperial War Museum’s example is silver, with the reverse stamped “A.900”, a continental silver standard rather than a British hallmark, and the remains of the lugs that held it to a beret.
Manufacture and description from the Imperial War Museums catalogue, INS 3926.
Astrolabe or armillary sphere?
An astrolabe is a flat disc used to measure the height of the stars. An armillary sphere is a model of the heavens made of rings around a central globe. The PPA badge shows rings around a globe on a stand, which is an armillary sphere.
The Imperial War Museum describes the cap badge as an astrolabe and a PPA lapel badge in its collection as an armillary sphere. Other descriptions call it simply “a globe on a stand”.
“Astrolabe” is the unit’s own name for it, and this site uses it for that reason. A 1945 War Office file with an official drawing of the badge is held at the Imperial War Museum (LBY K.38081). It may settle both the name and whether the badge was ever officially approved.
Other PPA insignia
| Item | Description | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Cap badge | Silver sphere on an ornate stand, worn on a black beret | IWM INS 3926 |
| Lapel badge | Silver-coloured, embossed sphere, inscribed “PPA” | IWM INS 43117 |
| Shoulder title | “PPA” embroidered in silver wire on black | IWM INS 43114 |
| Collar badges | A matching cap and collar set, rarely seen | Private collections |
The “coded message” story
Verified
A note for collectors
PPA badges are rare, and copies exist. Early Cairo-made badges carry Egyptian silver marks, which helps date them. If you own an original badge and would be willing to let us photograph it for this page, we would like to hear from you.
What we don’t yet know
- Whether the badge was ever officially approved by the War Office.
- What the device on Peniakoff’s bookplate originally meant to him.
- How many badges were made at each stage.
Get in touch if you can help.
Sources
- Imperial War Museums, catalogue records INS 3926, INS 43117 and INS 43114.
- V. Peniakoff, Private Army (Jonathan Cape, 1950).
- British & Commonwealth Military Badge Forum, discussions of the PPA badge.