Badge — Black Sabbath World Tour badge, England, 1972-1973 (S.3157-2010)
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
1972-1973
Badge in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (museum number S.3157-2010), made in England, dated 1972-1973. The museum's brief description reads: Black Sabbath badge..
Museum description: Black Sabbath badge. Black Sabbath World Tour - plastic coated, round, black with red figure and white text. 1972/73. The museum records it as plastic, printing ink, measuring Diameter 5.8 cm. These details come from the museum's own record; how far this object represents a wider collectible type has not yet been independently verified.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
Black Sabbath is one of the most influential heavy metal bands of all time, helping to create the genre with ground breaking albums such as Paranoid. Their original sound focused on ominous lyrics and doomy music, in stark contrast to popular music of the early 1970s. This badge was an insignia to distinguish the wearer as being a fan of the band, showing their allegiance to the metal subgenre. It was created to be a souvenir of their 1972/73 world tour and has the cover artwork from the band's album Black Sabbath Vol. 4. The image in red was adapted from a monochrome photo taken of Ozzy Osbourne performing with the band on stage.
Physical characteristics
- Material
- plastic, printing ink
- Dimensions
- Diameter 5.8 cm
Technical characteristics
- Place recorded
- England
Identification
- Museum object name
- Badge
- Museum object number
- S.3157-2010
- Museum system number
- O1176633
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: confirm the wider type, maker and date against a specialist reference.