ralstona

Probably not in daily activities but he fought at the Battle of Messifre in 1926. He was taken POW there. I assumed (or maybe just hoped) he had a helmet on. He received a CdG TOE for this action. Art

Lovely uniform. My great-grandfather was one of 55 officers with the 13 DBLE at the Battle of Narvik in Norway in 1940. He won the Legion of Honour there. He was a reserve Leiut. when he was hand picked for the 13th DBLE (he was Swiss and could ski... so they thought he would be valuable). He ended up returning to Algeria once the Legion made it to England. I bet he knew this man. Thanks for posting. Art

And one more.

Another picture.

Picked this up recently. It is a kalpak (cap) for an officer in the Trans-Jordan Frontier Force. This was the British unit created after WWI to patrol the relatively lawless Eastern part of the Palestine Mandate. It is made of lambs wool. Front badge and small side badge both have unit emblem. Top and side are red with gold piping to denote rank. I am not sure rank though, any ideas? Any additional info. would be appreciated. Art

Great, thanks Veteran! Do you think he might have had one of those transitional metal skull caps under his kepi? Also, another question... Fast-Forward a few years. He is in Syria in 1925-26 during the Druse War. What is he wearing on his head then? Had the Mle 26 helmet been introduced? Doubtful right? So would it have been a Mle 1915? If so, what color?

Still trying to put together the full story of my great-grandfather who served in the FFL. He was wounded on 9 May 1915 at Carnecy. This was the first day of the 2nd Battle of the Artois. It was fought to take Hill 140 (Vimy Ridge). My question is this...what would he have been wearing on his head at that time? It seems to be right in that transition time. Would it have been a Horizon Blue kepi? A "skull cap helmet" with a kepi? An Adrian Helmet? If an Adrian then was it blue or khaki? Any help appreciated. Art

One more pic.

Just picked this up.

One more pic.

Just picked this up from a well known dealer here in the US. Thought I'd share. It's a Turkish Cavalry sword. Has a nice German made quill back blade, guard with crescent and star cut out and grip made of I can't figure out what (wood, gutta, horn ...) Has some markings on the blade (crescent on spine and see below for the rest). Couple of questions: 1. Anybody know for sure what the grip is made of? 2. What "model" is this? 3. Did all Turkish Cavalry carry it? 4. What do the inscriptions say (see below)? 5. Anybody have a scabbard? Art

Hello, US patches aren't my thing. I have had this one for long time. I would love to know what it is. Any help greatly appreciated. Thanks, Art

Great group (and right up my alley). Very rare too! There were only 309 issued (115 to officers and 194 to airmen). Great find!

Anything worth owning from that period would cost more. This is a "too good to be true".

He is back at it. FOUR more on ebay. Now a bit more vague about their age. Still not saying they are total FAKES they are.

Yes... a fake too. Who is offering these by the way. They need to be exposed or educated. They are ripping off innocent people. Good thing you checked first. How much were they asking?

Just like #1... total fake. These are all over ebay. Stay away!

Easy guys... Anyway I would stay away from this one. I think this is not a real medal at all, pure fantasy. Even if it is real there is no way it is real if you know what I mean. Check the posting below on the Ebay posting. These are being manufactured in China today and some unscrupulous dealers are trying to pass them off. The front has a bad look to it. I could'nt access the other pics you posted but I almost don't have to. The back is a sort of pewter look, a bit grainy with a Chinese inscription, maybe a number and a pin brooch, no? It would be good to post a pic of the back just for reference. I bought one a couple of months ago from a dealer for $150 just because I was curious. Totally fake. Luckily he let me return it as he was as unaware as I was. Anyway... no good, stay away.

Who knows. Maybe I am wrong. He could be legit.

Nothing to say that this guy is ACTUALLY associated with this group. They're in China so he doesn't really have to be worried about them coming after him. And if he was affiliated with this group, why in God's name would they be selling important peices on Ebay for way below market value? It just seems fishy. Ha Ha, I just read his "About ME" section on ebay. He claims to be a historian with this Chinese Museum. He is asking for donations to the museum as well. He also claims that while they have lots of uniforms for the museum, they still need medals! So why are you selling them on Ebay? Hmm...

It goes beyond that. His ebay id is FlyingTigerHistoricalorganization. He claims to be affiliated with that organization (if it exists). I believe there is something going on here. I am a collector too and am very suspicious of claims of documented groups that don't show documents, are being "Buy it Now"ed for low (but still substantial) prices and look like all those other fakes coming out of China. They are relatively well made, so I can see why a novice would be fooled. He says these are awards that AVG members were entitled too but never claimed.

Anybody seen the Orders of the Cloud and Banner being sold on Ebay out of St. Petersburg, FL? Opinions on them? I have been in a back and forth with the seller. He says they are genuine and have paperwork (which he has not pictured). He has sold three in the last month all of which he claims are genuine "AVG" medals. The current one has a buy it now price of $500.

Any thought on how I can get more information about his LoH citation / details about the event? All we know is that it may have involved saving a journalist who was covering Battle of Narvik.

I think I will. In the meantime I would be honored if you would put him on your website. Let me know what you need.

Thanks a lot! Yes it is an AMAZING story. The man was literally everywhere. I have considered, for a long time, writing up his story for publication. Any suggestions?