The most noticable characteristic, that you can't really see the depth of here, is the depth of color of the head, neck, breast, belly, lower tail feathering and thighs. The dark copper and bronze with metallic sheen is really very descriptive of these beautiful pigeons. The black wings are an extremely lustrous ebony black. The Gimpel is of medium size, between 33 and 34 centimeters long, and is slender and graceful. The head is narrow, long, and slightly arched, plain headed or peak crested, the pointed crest highly placed in a sharp point.
All examples shown here sport the peak crest.
The eyes are deep, bright orange, enclosed by a cere of coral tint, enhancing the brilliant metallic sheen of the head and neck. The beak is long, moderately thin, and bent slightly downward at the tip. The wings are moderately long and rest on the tail when not in flight. The exact history of the breed cannot be confirmed, but it was known in Germany in 1820, and imported into Britain via Ghent by Sir John Sebright in 1839. And so our knowledge of this queen of color sat, until recent research performed by Josip Pekanovic, translated by Thomas Hellmann , brought a far more ancient history to light.