Tom Y

A good'un, by gum. Is it 3 piece all steel?

Hallo to all the Gang

It must have British connections due to the representation of the shamrock, & thistle on the design which can only mean a Irish & Scottish connection, also the representation of Saint George, all we need to track down is the information to a British Regiment connected with a double eagle-head insignia, piece of cake

Strange though how the rose and leak are missing!!!

Kev in Deva.

Isn't that a rose above the eagle's left wing, across from the thistle? I seem to remember a similar badge discussed on WAF. St. George is a Russian symbol too. Could it be a British regiment with Tsar Nicholas as Chef? After all, Germany, Britain and Russia were one big happy family.

The Leaves on this 2Kl.are silver gilt. Unfortunately I can't get a shot of thec back without damaging the bar.

The doc. Click for full size image.

Something a little different.

Justus Kramer, Eastern Front, R.I.P.

Add one U800

Tom,

From the words printed on it, I think that may have started life as a booster charge used in conjunction with shrapnell rounds.

Whatever it is, it is certainly at the very rare end of the "insanely rare" scale.

David

As in powder bag? That would explain the silk, and I imagine most of them were incinerated.

Chip's Salzbeutel reminded me of this bag for an egg grenade. It came with an EK in it a few years ago & has been languishing in a cigar box. It's silk, so rather delicate to start with, and I can't imagine too many people wanting to keep one.

Nothing too exciting at first glance. A scarce but hardly rare telegraph buckle.[attachmentid=27585]

But take a second look [attachmentid=27587]

Apparently the crown and the wreath were 2 separate dies so the same factory could make Prussian, Bavarian, and Saxon buckles. Made on a Mondy morning or a Friday afternoon?

Joe, that 1 piece job.

After an initial bout of knee-jerk paranoia I'm perfectly content with mine.

My humble offering

Rick, for which award is that colorful last ribbon? The Merit Medal from Jamaica?

Ital 1st Class with Ganga Leaves

The Article by Peter Sauerwald and Claus Zimmerling that was published in the BDOS journal a few years ago didn't really shed any light on the issue, except to charge that a host of these spanges out there are actually fakes. That is entirely possible, and I can't say that I can sort out the confusion myself, but I certainly wouldn't take all of the authors' contentions at face value. First of all, they illustrate an example as "original" that has no beading on the frame of the Iron Cross, which as PK has pointed out is - well, highly unusual. Secondly, the article seems to imply that there is only ONE original type, which to me is patently false. It's my understanding (from Freidhelm Heyde's book) that there were no issued examples at all; recipients only got a document giving them authorization to wear it. What's more, the vast majority of those recipients would have had their medals mounted on a parade bar, necessitating a prong-mounted spange, rather than one with a slide. Jorg Nimmergut's book implies that "originals" all had a slide, and prong-backed pieces were private purchase, but that statement is meaningless if we accept the Freidhelm Heyde/Max Aurich contention that they were ALL private purchase.

Am I making a mistaken assumption? Were there really any "awarded" examples, or were they all private purchase by definition?

Tim

Until someone comes up with an issue packet, or, better yet, box with one of Willi's moustache hairs stuck to it and a DNA match I guess we'll never know

While you're waiting to find an original ribbon World Medals in the UK is a good source for modern replacements.

Oh yeah? Well think how old I feel !!!! Just saw on TV yesterday... the first Guns n Roses album ........ WAS RELEASED 20 YEARS AGO !!!! I remember it like yesterday....Even we young guys are getting old

I feel your pain. The first Grateful Dead album was released 40 years ago

Excellent!!!

Now, what about Flotation Devices? (Ask me if I'm still laughing about that where I live, in a month or two )

How long is a cubit?

How did you hang the medal bars up? Are they on little hooks in there or pinned into the backing?

Living where you live, dunno as I'd want to have them pressing ON the glass if they are leaning forward enough to touch.

I made little hooks out of stainless wire & stuck them through holes drilled in the back. Then just drop the pin over the hooks & you're set. The trifolds have a piece of stainless going through the top loop. There's a good 1 1/2 in. space in front of them. I also keep a dehumidifier going in the War Room 24/7. Working on a way to mount singles now without damaging the ribbons. Got some ideas, and will post when I've succeeded.

Now if I can just do something with this lot

And naturally...

Plagued by a dearth of horizontal surface, I decided to rearrange one of my cases to hang on the wall. This one's pretty well divided between the Wars of Unification and the Great War, with China as a wild card.

Let's give the perp the benefit of the doubt. A goodly portion of the uniform could have been preempted by rats for construction purposes or moths, roaches, or other multilegged critters for haute cuisine. Regardless, it's bloody (can I say that?) shame

Oooh, I'm in

If you ever get tired of it.....

A man after my own heart

Landwehr 2nd Class 1879-91

Try it again

Landwehr 2nd Class 1879-91