landsknechte

The only documentation we have is his Separation Report, and apparently all of his other records still in government custody were destroyed in the 1973 fire. It doesn't mention wings, but the fact that his GCM was left off doesn't give me 100% confidence in the accuracy of the clerk that typed it up. Thanks, --Chris

Could it have been a Russian Civil War era award? --Chris

I'm in the process of obtaining replacement medals of the medals that my grandfather earned in WWII. In the "we'll be sending the stuff soon" letter, there was a mention at the bottom of a different address to contact for obtaining Army and Army Air Corps wings. That came as a bit of a surprise... We know went through at least some pilot training (there was an Advanced Aviation Cadet patch among his effects, for what it's worth), before slipping a disc in his back and washing out. Eventually he was retrained and spent the remainder of the war on the ground in England. Anyhow, I'm wondering if any of the following training would have merited him wings (air crew?): Radio Operator & Mechanic Radar Mechanic Pre-Radar Radar Mechanic Navigator --Chris

There were certainly enough examples of Germans adding swords to foreign decorations that didn't officially bear them in their home countries. Seems plausable enough. --Chris

The strange blue and white ribbon on the right side of the bar. The only two known to exist. Now, if I could just figure out what it actually is, my OCD streak could finally have a well deserved break. Other than that... On ribbon bars, I have a Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Order of the White Falcon 1st Class (1 of 154) and two Bavarian Military Merit Cross 1st Class with Crown and Swords (2 of ~175). Not much else that's anywhere near as rare, beyond that. --Chris

Interesting that a Bavarian would end up with a Prussian fireman's long service decoration. --Chris

If it can be generalized at all, who typically received St. Anne's? --Chris

Now that you mention it, I think I saw it in a group that was rather heavy in the Hohenzollern.

Cotton, linen, silks... Usually they're good. Check with a higher-end frame shop. They'll likely be able to point you in the right direction.

What's the silver on black ribbon. I know I've seen it before, but I can't put my finger on it.

Everybody knows that one of the greatest threats to our society are those morons that recreate themselves as ex-Navy SEALs and the like. By parading around the VFW halls with honors that they didn't earn, they're destroying the historical legacy of the veterans that truly earned such honors. To combat it, the only logical thing to do is to create a broad, sweeping, and poorly thought out law that will impact far more collectors and historians that are working to preserve the historic legacy of our veterans. Who cares if the the historical legacy of our veterans is swept aside in the name of protecting the historical legacy of our veterans? Stolen logic is more like it. --Chris

One cheap and easy trick for dressing up a Riker case is to wrap some sort of fabric around the cotton or pseudo-cotton backing, and pin it to the back side.

The color combination doesn't really say much of anything definate. There are a ton of Weimar-era Prussian decorations of various sorts that use those colors. So far, that's the only source that I've been able to find anything at all about that particular ribbon yet. --Chris

FWIW, the records are such that Rick Research has been able to rule out the Henry the Lion with swords positively. --Chris

Nope. That's part of the reason that I'm floating it past the collective wisdom of the group. Rick Research took a look at it in the past, and was unable to find anyone that had the Knight 1st Class and only the Hamburg Hanseatenkreuz. Probably a very late war recipient that missed the 1918 Rank List.

Incidentally, there were only 154 of the Knights 1st Class awarded. That rarity is the main reason that I even bother to ask. --Chris

#4 is apparently: #5 most likely is the Austrian Ehrenlegion, given the peculiar swords.

I've had this one for a little while now, but I've never posted it on this forum. The backing is Navy blue, but there isn't any obvious hint as to what the missing long service devices might have been. Most likely this is someone who earned the White Falcon late in 1918, given the research that's already been undertaken. Given the mere handful of White Falcon Knight 1st Class out there, I thought I'd float this past the group in the even that perhaps someone had seen a related ribbon or medal bar.

I posted this one previously, but apparently it's amongst the postings that vanished into some sort of forum netherworld. Oh well... Anyhow, I had discovered a very hard to see hole in the ribbon on the right. Previously, that ribbon had been assumed to be a Brunswick Order of Henry the Lion. If that hole is indeed from a device, per Rick, it can't be a BrH. There had been a bit of discussion as to what that ribbon might have been which, of course, vanished before I had a chance to copy anything down. Could those of you who ventured theories previously, be so kind as to venture them again? Thanks, --Chris

I was thinking more pre-colonial:

Out of curiosity, does anyone have any rough numbers for pre-WWI awards? --Chris

Yipes... That's what happens when I post when I am running low on my sacred caffeine. Didn't even notice that little quirk.

The bar with the 10 and 15 year NSDAP long service devices is a nice, rather uncommon, one.

How would the ribbon bar have been worn?

It's a shame that the signature is so tiny. You can barely make it out in that scan... --Chris