Ulsterman

Is row 5, middle medal the Saudi combat medal?

Given the clarity of the photo i would assume @ 1900. The Chin'g armies wore the Manchu cap for centuries and the Mandarin's dragon emblems would denote his "rank" (Oh, where is that Antique Collectors' magazine article?)...as you know. A number of other European officers who were with Gordon in the Ever Victorious Army stayed on in Imperial China right through the Boxer war. A number of others were hired as technical experts-notably artillery officers by the Empress. Some were even KIA in the Japanese war.

In surfing I saw this. After cropping and sizing this shows a rather good picture of a modern Jordanian General's medal ribbon bar from @ 2005. Alas, I recognize almost nothing!

Nice! One of General Gordon's advisors or later-@1900?

Perhaps the size and separate purchase/issue explains this (photo @ 1934):

I had read that N.S. Meyer went out of business. I'd love to have their archives....or at least a summary thereof. It appears you have a bit of everything in Latin America. I spot El Salvador, Nicaragua and Argentina off the cuff. Most of this insignia (judging by the boxes) is 1980s-1990s issue.

Well, thanks chaps- I posted this as the seller (Kelly), a nice elderly chap who sells only in reproductions, swore blind to me that it was a repro, that is perhaps containing a few original medals, but bought by him and sold as is where is as a repro.. Kelly is forthcoming with what he sells-and to whom. Some big dealer names have been mentioned and he also is quite up-front about past bulk ribbon bar purchases. I posted it here not only for reassurance but also as a warning. If this really is a modern re-sewn bar (using older medals), then there is an Austrian guy out there who is a medal bar artist and like Rick said in the Lowell parking lot, 'it's time to give this hobby up'. Kelly's other stuff is instructive and he is quite willing to tell how and where he makes and sells his wares. This bar was purportedly made in Austria by a "craftsman" who is presently undergoing some sort of personal crisis. Kelly has used him frequently in the past and interestingly, he is very fuzzy about prices. One of the awful oil stained bars he showed me had an original Lubeck cross on it along with a (very) fake Mecklenburg cross and a real HKx and probably a real EK2-price was $ 125: the sum of the parts is worth more than the bar. The silver "wash" seems rather unpatinaed silver on the rear corner of the left flame. A light rub with a cotton removed much patina swiftly. If this MVO4x is a fake I'll eat my hat, the quality is superb and there are some significant enamel scuffs from the EK2. I'd rate it VF only. I suspected the LS 18 to be a repro, as it looked pristine, but having had it under a scope, one can see some serious wear along the left arm where it rubs against the Hkx. The only thing I really am now scrutinizing are the eagles, but frankly, with a real MVOx, I'm not that concerned. One is left wondering about the LS 18 though which would date the bar to 1937/38. Even entering in 1918 and serving as an ace jr. Lt through the Reichsheer (I've i.d.ed 8 possible officers so far) this man would've had a 25 year cross by 1940 and probably a flower war medal or two. You lot are the world experts ... so it appears as if the collecting angels were with me on Sunday. A BIG THANK YOU to Rick (and Regina) who will get a free dinner out of this one. Of course we'll never know for certain until a time machine is invented, but it seems I'm a lucky, lucky man. Now to sell something Irish to pay for it and get my wife speaking to me again. :rolleyes:

Very cool! May we please see a close up of the Merit Order Cross in the case? I reckon the Langsdorf thread could use a decent illustration of that Magnificent piece!

In searching through the threads on MVOxs I found Ramblinfarms-his is like the one on my recent acquisition. Anyone know what happened to RF? He had some great photos.

Yeah- I know Claudio, I tried, i really did, but that's about as good as I can get unless I uninstall this "scan wizard" my wife installed and get a new scanner. Sorry. However, Rick handled it a great deal. He can give more intimate details. Oh-and the ribbons are stiff too.

Ah- so much to research, so few frequent flier miles! :banger:

Sorry about the poor scans-I am a victim of a scanner that is not an Epson. I forgot to add, the bar shows uniform wear, smells old and the MVOx has a few wear scuffs from the EK2 on the enamel-as does the Austrian service cross. The back:

I bought this bar yesterday as a fake made a fraudmaker in Austria who mixes originals and new medals. Rick and I perused it thoroughly. The MVOx is marked for silver content with some remains of silver wash. The LS 18 is magnetic as is the LS 4. The EK2,HKx and Austrian merit cross are all undoubted originals. The thread used to sew it on the bar is Wehrmacht grey. The ribbons do not glow (except for the rabbit fur that has recently attached to the bar). What do YOU think is wrong with this bar? Sorry about the really bad scans.

Well, Rick and I had a good day yesterday. T1V2 This is what I got. Engraved serial # 9231, screwback...@ 1960ies? mayhap a long service award? By the way, are these the equal of the Soviet military combat medal?

I mus say the badge is a beauty, but the thread's title led me to hope for something.... else. :cheeky:

Bernhard! I had no idea! You must have some GREAT stories to tell. Did the criminal investigators ever catch anyone interesting/(in)famous?

Outstanding!! Who was he?

Given the prominence of the Messerer family in Bavaria, I'm willing to bet that if one can locate a German "Whos Who" from @ 1965- 1975 he will show up.

Interesting. A Chinese officer who received both Flower war medals. What a ribbon bar he would have.

Very, very nice. Are there any photos of it in wear?

Stunning-just stunning. I am sorry to hear about Tony.

Keep in mind that the U.S. government is not at all efficient at times, especially in these matters. My parents undoubtedly deserved a pin a two, but the local admin. in charge of this stuff probably forgot or lost them etc. etc.. It happened (s) all the time. I know of state department folks who were 'awarded" higher ranking merit medals by Hillery herself and all they had on hand were miniature medals. 15 years later they still don't have their full size awards. My Grandfather only received his WW1 campaign medal in 1969! (a scant 50 years after he returned home)...and he had to apply for it via his VFW post!

It was a Dodkins piece? Well, he was no fool. Personally, I would look very carefully at Meybauer pieces. This companies stamp has shown up on a number of suspect badges over the past 10-15 years, notably imperial flight badges. Interestingly though, one doesn't see an overwhelming plethora of these stamped badges, which might be an argument for originality.

You're very welcome

Both. Factories were awarded the badges, for example the Kittery shipyard, but specific shifts and individuals were then individually awarded the badge by the factory managers. For example, at the Kittery ship yard in 1944 the telephone operators, some welders, carpenters and a number of administrative people were specifically denied the badge for various reasons (length of work service, ad hoc "strikes"/absences, lack of productivity etc. etc. . Not everyone who worked at a company necessarily got the badge, but most did. A lot of women received the badge during the war and wore it proudly. They had a big party when they handed them out, drinks, dancing, picnics etc.. see here (and the N.Y.Times of May 2, 1944) http://www.antiquefishinglures.com/award.htm