oamotme

Dear All, These are indeed Egyptian and the texts read as follows: Tank : "Egypts Shield, Victory or Death" Sword : "Infantry" Shoulder title : "Airborne" Cap badge " Egyptian Arab Republic" Regards, Owain

Lorenzo, I believe the one on the right with a suspension "chain" is some from of official award. The one with Saddam and wings is new to me. Owain

My late grandfather, John Edward Arnold Evans, was a banker in British East Africa with Barclays DCO throughout WW2 and at some stage was apparently appointed as a "Financial Advisor" to the Britsih Miliitary - he was to receive a military rank (Maj./Lt.Col.?) but this was decided to be inappropriate on the basis that whatever rank he held he could be overruled by a senior officer and thus he remained a civilian. He received no awards. Owain

Gentlemen, The sword illustrated is the sword awarded for the liberation of Al Fao and not the Qadiisiyah Saddamm sword. I would suggest that there are three swords - probably all of the same design and manufacture, but bearing different inscriptions: Qadissiyah Saddam for the Iraq-Iran War and part of the 1980s overhaul of the Iraqi honours system. The Liberation of Al Fao sword - specific to this particular action during the Iraq-Iran war. (Another one off award was the "Key of Liberation of Basra" - awarded in at least two classes and cast from the smelted weapons iof Iraqi martyrs!) The Um Al Marek (Mother of Battle) sword instituited in 1991 and replacing the Qadissiyah Saddam sword - same decree as that replacing the Order of Qadissiyah Saddam by the Order of Mother of Battle. It is possible (probable) that Will's jewelled breast badge is the medallic representation of all three of these swords., however the suspension bar/clasp states "Sword of Qadissiyah Saddam" and thus is specific to the first sword. The example I have is also gilded base metal. Lorenzo's photograph of the chain of 1980's awards has the badge second only to the Rafidain. Regards, Owain.

Many thanks - I'll see if I can get a copy when next in UK. Owain

Dear Tiger-pie, Many thanks - does this book include photographs of Nufl or Ghassani? Owain

Gentlemen, I am currrently researching the Dhofar Liberation Front (DLF), Popular Front for the Liberation of the Occupied Arabian Gulf (PFLOAG), National Democratic Front for the Liberation of Oman (NDFLOAG), Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman (PFLO) and I am endeavouring to obtain a picture of the initial two leaders of these organisations Mussalim Bin Nufl (1963-68), a former member of Sultan Saeed's household, and his successor in Mohammed Ahmed Saeed Al Ghassani (1968-1975). Does anyone have any information? I detail below a potential bibliography ? Who Dares Wins, Tony Geraghty, 1980, Arms & Armoour; ? SAS operation Oman, Colonel Tony Jeapes, 1980, The Battery Press, Inc. ? We Won a War, John Akehurst, 1982, Michael Russell; ? A History of the SAS Regiment, John Strawson, 1984, Secker & Warburg; ? Honour to the Airborne (Part 2), David Buxton, 1985, Elmdon Publishing [A5 booklet]. ? The Secret War, Dhofar 1971/1972, David C. Arkless, 1988, William Kimber & Co. Ltd. ? A-Z of the SAS, Peter Darman, 1992, Sidgwick & Jackson; ? Muscat Command, Peter Thwaites, 1995, Leo Cooper. ? In the Service of the Sultan, Ian Gardiner, 2006, Pen & Sword; There are no such pictures in Arkless, Jeapes or Thwaites books - perhaps the others may assist. Kind regards, Owain (OAMOTME)

Wil, This is not the Sirdars Medal shown in your other post - the crown suspension clearly differentiates it from the Sirdar's Efficiency Medal. This looks like a full time soldier not a cadet. Possible options: Badge of office, i.e. Corporal of the Guard / duty NCO or similar. Passing out award - best NCO of cadre or similar. Prize medal - shootiong, sports, etc. Sirdar / Governor's Guard designation. Food for thought...... Owain

Doc, Nice piece - no makers mark thus I would suggest either a Bertrand or Huguenin piece - I suspect the former. Owain

Lorenzo, It appears to be a badge to commemorate the opening / rebuilding of the Saddam Bridge connecting Fao to the mainland. Regards, Owain

Bob, This is a ceremony following the conclusion of the failed seccession in 1994 of the integrated PDRY into RoY and Ali Abdullah Saleh is awarding the Order of the War Wounded to the families of those soldiers killed during the fighting. The "new" medal in the Sana'a Military Museum is the one class Order of Merit and comes in various issues: Industry Sport Science (illustrated) Art & Literature Agriculture Co-operation The central design, inscription and central ribbon stripe colour varies. Regards, Owain. PS I am currently working on a draft on the awards of YAR/RoY for submission to JOMSA

Gentlemen, A great selection of the awards of the Republic of Yemen (RoY)- in the most part based on the existing awards of the Yemen Arab Republic (YAR) but new manufacturer, ECC Group (German I believe) and with design variations. From the top & off the top of my head aided by labels: Order of Unity (22 May 1990) 10th Anniversary of Unification Medal (2000) - there is a unification ribbon but no medal. Order of 30th November (Brits leave PDRY 1967) - replaces a Soviet style PDRY Order of Independence. Order of 14 October ( Start of Radfan Uprising 1963) - replaces PDRY Order of Revolution. Order of Seventy (Commemorates Royalist siege of Sana'a in civil war 1967/8 and this appears to be an original YAR award by Skinner of Bond Street, London issue - only awarded at this level to senior officers present although there is now, post unification, a Medal or Decoration of Seventy) Medals of Service (yellow), Duty (green) & Honour (blue) - there are at least three incarnations of this series. Order of War Wounded - single class neck badge. Order of Bravery - single class sash and sash badge Collars of the Republic and Unity. I was in Sana'a a couple of weekends ago and the selection of awards in the Military Museum there is not as good, but I suspect the illustrated series was used to provide new items for the Aden Museum which was looted during the post unification seccession attempt and also to demonstrate some visible symbols of unity. All good stuff! Owain

Ed / Chris, Similar ribbon bars for Yemen, KSA, UAE and usually covered with a thin sheet of clear polythene. Here in Riyadh are now available plastic moulded ribbon bars - the CO British Military Mission has some for his UK awards when wearing National Guard uniform - his OBE is very bright pink and when queried by Saudi collegues on the necessity/suitabilty of "pink" ribbon this is explained and understood when they are told it is from the Queen - "Ah, if it is from the Queen then pink is OK!" Owain

Ed is right - it is of course a copy, but in view of the naming, it is to my mind, a period copy and not a modern fake made to deceive the us poor collectors. Owain

Chris, Your theory is as valid as any other and in the light of no known fakes of this medal I remain convinced that this is a cast copy made locally - possibly after an orignal issue had run out. I have yet to identify the manufacturer of the original issue but as it is of good quality I would suggest it is European but to date I cannot confirm wheter this would be British, French or Swiss. Perhaps it is indeed Iraqi as the Faisal Bravery Medal of this 1926 series was locally manufactured butI am not convinced. We now have evidence of at least six varieties of this award: Original issue 33.5mm diameter Sigal Baghdad issue 34mm diameter Cast issue - Owain - 32mm diameter Cast issue - Chris - diameter tba Huguenin issue - 35mm diameter Republican Huguenin issue - disc 34.5mm diameter With regard to the clasps these were all locally manufactured: Southern Kurdistan 1930-31 Barzan 1932 Tiyareen Campaign 1933 Euphrates campaign 1935 Euphrates Campaign 1936 With the exception of the first which is today relatively scarce, the latter four are nigh impossible to find. Kind regards, Owain

Chuck, Thanks for your input. I attach an image of a Shamil award - all were individually made and have different inscriptions. In this instance the inscription reads, approximately, "In war young is the one who has control and in battle sways as the lion and he has been rewarded" This piece is dated 1274 hijra which corresponds with 1857/8. Regards, Owain

Clara Semple's book on these coins is a must. They were issued in their millions by various mints through out Europe including, if I recall correctly, the Royal Mint. They spread all over Arabia, Eat Africa and even further afield. It is more than likely that the silver in the above illustrated necklace started life as coins. They are plentiful in Yemen and were even used as blanks to be restamped with the coinage of the Imams. Regards, Owain

Gentlemen, In today's Arab News a brief entry: "Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of Kingdom Holding Comopany, was rcently honored by Eritrea President Isaias Afewerki with the country's highest state medal. He was accorded Presidential Coat of Arms of the State of Eritrea, which is a first class decoration, on his visit to Asmara on the invitation of Afewerki." The accompanying photograoph shows Waleed recieving a camel table piece! The son of a friend of mine has recently completed a tour of duty as the British Ambassador in Eritrea and during his tour was unable to find any information concerning Eritrean awards and I think reasonably concluded that there were no official awards. On looking at the Eritrean constitution, adopted July 1996, it states under Article 42, Powers and Duties of ther President, Section 16 "Confer honours and medals on citizens, residents and friends of Eritrea in consultation with relevant persons and institutions". Thus there is an intention to have awards - perhaps these awards have yet to be instituted. Waleed is known for his self promotion and has collected awards from all over the world in recognition of his wealth and potential investment in countries. Not so long ago he had a full page advertisement in the Arab News trumpeting his award of the Legion of Honour from France and the award illustrated was back to front! It may well be that the Eritrean award was a gift which has been translated into an award - who knows? The only other reference I have been able to find concerning Eritrean awards concerns what appears to be academic achievement awards - see article below. Kind regards, Owain News & Articles An award that motivates By Efrem Habtetsion Jul 24, 2007, 7:00am The Zagre and Sawa awards were given to students who scored full grades in the Secondary School Leaving Certificate Examination, and to Eritrean students who have successfully completed their studies abroad respectively, last Saturday, July 21, here in Asmara. This year, 17 students, of which three females, who attended 12th grade in Warsay-Yikealo Secondary School in Sawa and who scored 4.0 GDP in the matriculation received a laptop computer and a medal from the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Osman Saleh. The winners of the award participated in the 19th round of the national service. According to the organizer of the award, the laptop computers were provided by His Excellency, President Isaias Afewerki. During the occasion, 17 Eritrean students from the Diaspora received the Sawa prize, a medal, from the Minister of Education Mr. Semere Rusom. The Sawa prize is given to Eritrean students who have successfully completed their secondary studies abroad. The Chairman of the National Union of Eritrean Youth and Students, Mr. Sultan Seid stated that the main objective of the Union is to train a versatile, responsible and dedicated youth. ?And so as to train a youth with such values, the Union has to focus on investing in education,? he said. The Chairman also underlined that Eritrean youths and students who have completed their education in the Diaspora should augment their contribution in the national development endeavors. The Zagre and Sawa awards were given at the presence of ministers, PFDJ officials, parents and invited guests. The awarding ceremony featured different entertainment activities by the NUEYS Wari Children?s Cultural Group and singer Wedi Tkabo. The Zagre award started in 1998, with a medal and a 4,000 Nakfa cash prize. However, beginning last year, the award has been a laptop computer and a medal. ? Copyright 2001 - 2003 Shaebia.org

Gentlemen, I am currently researching the awards of Imam Shamil of Chechenya & Daghestan. The illustrated award is from a Thies catalogue of 2007 and purports to be a Shamil award converted into an early Soviet award. It is possibly a Shamil award but whilst of niello silver, the piece bears no inscription - which is traditional for such awards - and bears a central cast lions head, which, whilst emblematic of bravery, both lion's head and design work are of a high detailed standard that is not evident in the other examples of Shamil awards. The crossed swords, raised logo and red enamel star, bearing a hammer and plough are of different and later manufacture. The Russian inscription translates as "For Honour Service" - but I am convinced this is not correct. The reverse has three loops for wearing. Any ideas? Wuith thanks, Owain Raw-Rees.

Lorenzo, Perhaps at a stretch $100 but at $900 you are being viewed as an "economic opportunity" - sometimes it is good to say no. Good luck, Owain

Unless it was going for less than $50 I wouldn't bother. Owain

Whilst it appears to be an Iraqi crown if it is an Academy award it would be specific to the academy and not a state award - probably for academic or sports achievement. Regards, Owain

The Arabic is unclear - possibly a sports medal? Owain

Thanks for this input - such chests of ribbons seem to tbe medallic equivalents of crosswords! Would he have reecieved an award from the Shah - I would not have thought them to be obvious bedfellows? I will at the next opportunity trawl some of my old catalogues to see if there are any helpful illustrations. What about 9.3? For whatever reason it feels, at least to me, as non-African.... Rwegards, Owain

Dear 992F, Many thanks - I agree with the identifcation of Ethiopia Order of Sheba and I will amend my initial post. I will also relace the Liberia, row 5.3 with Unknown. Libya does have the Order of the Great Victor (Fatah Adheem) and could double up with Row 8.3 Senegal Order of the Lion. With regard to red with orange edges Rows 5.3 and 9.4 are these possible duplications? Perhaps Ivory Coast is 5.3 and the 9t row is all non-African as the Nile Order should have narrow blue edge stripesit Row 7.1 could be an Egyptian Military Duty Medal? Regards, Owain