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Gentlemen, Further to my post of 12 December 2020 I detail below another Latitude Zero Gan jewel. In this instance the ribbon also bears a RAOB letter device and in addition a clasp or bar with the inscription, 'Latitude Zero Lodge 9188 / MILLENIUM / 20th October 1980' The reverse is plain other than the makers mark, 'PARRY B'HAM' What is particularly interesting is that the design of the jewel has been flipped - the red crescent is now to the right of the jewel whereas on the first jewel it is to the left. A different ribbon also applies. As noted in the earlier post RAF Gan was situated at the south of the Maldives islands and established as a military base in 1941 - used as staging post for RAF flights and closed in 1976 and handed back to the Maldives Government. Kind regards, Owain

Megan, Some progress - some 36 pages - really no more than an overview and a guide - checking for typos and formatting......... Owain

Megan, I note you refer to Decree 271 of 18 June 1966, Establishment of the Somali-Ethiopian Campaign Medal January-April 1964. On the Italian legal website this law is noted but not accessible and on the Somali website most if not all of the decrees for 1964 are missing. The words 'needle' and 'haystack' come to mind! I am currently reviewing a draft edition of my Somali booklet. Owain .

Rusty, Good post - great images. Such an example of the order would be on the 'nice to have' list but I suspect that there will be bidders with deeper pockets! I note the estimate is £2,000 - £3,000 - it will surely go for more. All the successful buyer will need is a sash for the badge! Owain

Gentlemen, Further to my first post back in May 2020 I posted a couple of images of two RAOB Egypt jewels. I have recently obtained a nicer example of such a jewel awarded to Bro G.QW. Farquahar of the Concordia Lodge. The jewel is gilded base metal - no maker's mark. Owain

Bart, Many thanks. A very large number of Belgian nationals came to the UK as refugees during the Great War - some 250,000 plus - and I suspect that the answer to the mystery of these medals/awards may lie in the communities that these people made and lived in in UK. Kind regards, Owain

Good Morning, Further to my post of 17 December 2020, yesterday I purchased in a junk shop a jewel of the Aden Phoenix Lodge. Superb quality gilded silver - for £20 a good price for such workmanship. The Lodge specific jewel depicts a 'mountain' on the obverse an allusion to the barren rocks of Aden and the phoenix is supposedly to have originated in Arabia. The crown, eagle and the ribbon colours are symbolic of the Royal Air Force. Obverse - 'Aden Phoenix No. 8506' Reverse - Plain other than the initials FGP for the manufacturer Parry. The hallmarks are Birmingham silver, 'E' for 1954. Regards, Owain

Megan, In the early 1970's the decrees change from Italian to Somali and really are a challenge to translate! Sadly the series of laws is incomplete with photocopied pages overlapping and in some instances missing and also misfiled but at least some can be found Owain

Omar, Nice to see a 1st Class gold example of the Medal of Benevolence - instituted in 1923. Owain And.......both types King Fuad and King Faruq, Owain

Megan, Hey presto.....as sold by me - they are the UNTT/IFA - Order of Somali Solidarity - Law 7 of 30 Sep. & Decree 116 of 17 Nov. 1956 - short lived and obsolete upon proclamation of the Somali Republic. Owain

SAFO, Please to advise that after much searching I have now obtained a copy of the First Edition: 'Orders, Decorations and Medals of the Sultanate of Oman', Major A.R. Tinson, Spink and Son Limited, 1977 So over a period of 45 years four editions - quite a successful 'life' for a book on Arab awards. Owain

Good Morning Megan, Further to your post I would advise that I am having a small booklet published on Somali awards. This is based on my exhibit at the OMRS Convention last September, Somalia The Awards of a Failed State An attempt to document & display the awards of the Somali peoples from 1950 the time of the British Somaliland Protectorate & Italian Administration of the United Nations Trusteeship, through to independence in 1960 as the Somali Republic, the 1969 military coup & declaration of the Somali Democratic Republic, to the nation’s collapse in 1991. I was pleased to have been awarded a Gold Medal for the exhibit. Somali awards are a bit of a niche topic! As and when the booklet sees the light of day I will let you know. Kind regards, Owain

Hi SAFO, Good to note an updated list of awards is being compiled. I have three editions of Tinson's book: 'Awards of the Sultanate of Oman', Major A.R. Tinson, Spink, London, 1985 'Orders & Medals of the Sultanate of Oman', Lt. Col. A.R. Tinson, Spink, London, 1995 'Orders and Medals of the Sultanate of Oman', Originally written by Lt Col A.R. Tinson, Updated & Amended by Lt Col I Buttenshaw, WKhM, RAO Printing Press, Oman 2010. Does the Buttenshaw file you refer to update any amendments / corrections in the 2010 edition? Regards & thanks, Owain

Gentlemen, Further details concerning the recipient - with many thanks to Jim Routledge. He was John Richmond Marchant - born 18 Oct 1907. His RAF number was 364189 & he enlisted as a Halton Apprentice (9th Entry) in September 1923. Commissioned as a Pilot Officer in the Tech Eng Branch from the rank of Flt Sgt 19 Dec 1941 – London Gazette entries 5 May 1942, p.1973 & 2 June 1942, p. 2377. (Why there are be two entries is unknown.) He reached the rank of substantive Sqn Ldr 1 Jan 1949 & retiring 18 Oct 1956. He did not qualify for the British General Service Medal, clasp "Northern Kurdistan", but did qualify for the Iraq Active Service Medal, clasp "Southern Kurdistan1930-31". His full medal entitlement would include a selection of WW2 medals (at least 1939/45 Star & Defence / War Medals) & probably a RAF LSGC medal. His record of service would provide more details. Whilst he was initiated a member of the Ninak Lodge in 1932, by this date the DH9As, after which the Lodge was named, had departed Iraq. Regards, Owain

Gentlemen, On receiving the jewels I thought Ninak was somewhere in the Middle East although the name did not sound familiar. A quIck online search revealed that Ninak was the name given to the RAF Airco DH 9A light bomber biplane - taken from the phonetic designation of Nine A. It saw service from 1918-1931 with five RAF Squadrons serving service in the Middle East. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airco_DH.9A . Further research will hopefully identify where the Ninak Lodge was established. The other three jewels of the group are as follows: Sudan - Obverse suspension, "Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes". Obverse jewel, "Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes Khartoum Sudan", with a central camel similar to the design of the badge of the Sudan Defence Force. Reverse - "Presented to Bro. J.R. Marchant By The Khartoum Temperance Lodge No. 8310". Jewel is of gilded base metal with the makers name, "L. Simpson & Co.56 York Road King's Cross N1". The ribbon colours are those of the RAF. Palestine - Obverse suspension, "Palestine". Obverse jewel, "Province of Palestine", with a central castle or fort, no doubt representing a location in Palestine - perhaps Kerak Castle? Reverse - "Brabason Rees Lodge No. 6009 Bro. J.R. Marchant Member of the Palestine Province". Jewel is of silvered base metal with the makers name, "Fattorini & Sons Bradford House Birmingham". Iraq - Obverse suspension, "Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes". Obverse jewel, "Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes S.T.B. Iraq", (S.T.B. is unknown) with a central design of a palm tree, a fort, and I think, the Great Arch at Ctesiphon. Reverse - "Bro. ----------Member of the RAOB, GLE in Iraq". Jewel is of gilded base metal with the makers name, "L. Simpson & Co. King's Cross N1". The ribbon colours are the the Iraqi flag colours. I will endeavour to track down Marchant's RAF career. Kind regards, Owain.

Gentlemen, This time a group of 6 jewels from the 1930s to a J.R. Marchant - almost certainly a member of the RAF. The group includes 1st (Kangaroo), 2nd ( Certified Primo) & some country specific jewels. 1st Kangaroo - standard format - obverse inscription "Ninak Lge. No.5201". Reverse inscription, "Presented to Bro. J.R. Marchant. Initiated in the Ninak Lodge No. 5201 on the 24 July 1932". The jewel is of silver-gilt with hallmarks - for silver, Chester, date letter 'H' for 1933. Manufacturer's initials appear to be G.U. (George Unite). 2nd Certified Primo - standard format - obverse inscription, "Ninak Lge. No. 5201". Reverse inscription, "Presented to Bro. J.R. Marchant C.P. by the Ninak Lodge No. 5201 Certified on the 27 May 1934". The jewel is of silver-gilt with hallmarks - for silver, Chester, date letter 'J' for 1933. Manufacturer's initials appear to be G.U. (George Unite). Egypt Jewel - with "Donor" clasp. Reverse reads, "Member of the Province of Egypt Bro. J.R. Marchant Ninak 5201". The jewel appears to be of gilded base metal with the makers mark, "Fattorini & Sons Bradford House Birmingham". (A poorer quality example of this particular jewel has been previously posted.) More to follow tomorrow..... Owain

Gentlemen, Another internet image - of a pendant - obverse only - Sands of Arabia Lodge. The number is unclear but possibly 9962 - Arabian numerals have been used. From the depiction of the crescent, palm tree and crossed swords I would infer that this lodge was based in Saudi Arabia - no doubt on on of the British aerospace bases. I cannot make out what the 'pillar' to the right of the central disc is. Regards, Owain

Gentlemen, Further to my post of 7 June 2020 I have recently obtained a RAOB Bahrain Island Lodge No. 9167. Sadly it is not named nor marked. The pendant is nicely enamelled - the white & red colour scheme is a 'nod' to the national flag of Bahrain, whilst the palm trees are a generic symbol of the Arab world. I am unaware as to the significance of the green and yellow colours of the ribbon - perhaps green for the palm trees and yellow for sand? Regards, Owain

Gordon, Thanks for this addition to the thread. At one stage I considered collecting this series of medals but came to the conclusion that yet another focus of collecting would be too distracting. Owain

Gentlemen, Another Egypt based jewel from Ismailia - Lodge No. 10179 - a British operated RAF base from about 1916 through to 1956. The jewel image is from E-Bay - sadly poor definition and no image of the reverse - manufacturer stated to be Parry of Birmingham. Regards, Owain

Gentlemen, Not my usual focus, but I came across this in a miscellaneous auction mix of badges, etc. It is, I believe, a WW2 ARP (Air Raid Precautions) shelter identification badge - approx. 27mm diameter. I have no knowledge of such badges and it maybe, perhaps, a locally made badge allocated to children (&/or adults) to ensure they went to the correct shelter. Any thoughts or suggestions? Regards, Owain

Gentlemen, Another UK auction UK offering - RAOB Lodge RAF Aboukir No.3739 Aboukir is on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt and the bay in the Nile Delta is known for a sea battle of 1798 when the British Navy, under Nelson, defeated the French navy. The obverse depicts a seaside fort (at Aboukir?). The reverse is not seen. The ribbon appears to be red, white & black - the colours of the Egyptian Republic flag. NB It appear that RAF Aboukir closed in 1947 - see Wikipedia entry below - and thus it may be that the RAOB Lodge was relocated either in Egypt or perhaps post 1952 Coup to Cyprus. The device on the ribbon may be a stylised RAF Gloster Javelin aircraft. Regards, Owain PS From Wikipedia: Royal Air Force Aboukir or more simply RAF Aboukir is a former Royal Air Force base located 6.6 miles (10.6 km) northwest of Kafr El-Dawar and 7.2 miles (11.6 km) east of Alexandria, Egypt. Between 1916 and 1947 a number of units and squadrons were based there, including the central depot for RAF Middle East until 12 November 1939.

Hi Svapr, It is part of a lapel badge of office of a member of the Municipal Council of Alexandria, established in 1950 - it reads: 'Al Majlis Al Baladi b'l Iskandriya' (literally - The Popular Council of Alexandria). Your picture is unclear but is the badge is missing its backing staves? See image of complete badge - reverse not seen - or is yours just a star? Can you post a picture of the reverse? Regards, Owain

Hi Yasser, I was in contact with your father Abdorahman back in 2014/15 about your grandfather and based on his recollection and some research I had an article published in September 2016in the Journal of the UK Orders & Medals Research Society (OMRS). One of my staff in Riyadh acted as an interpreter between us - I am now back in UK. I detail the article below. Kind regards, Owain. The Bronze British War Medal 1914-20 to the Aden Labour Corps The Great War Medal – Aden Labour Corps Owain Raw-Rees, OMRS 3088 Abdu Mohammed Salwi, 1924 © Abdorahman Salwi In the summer of 2014 I was contacted by Abdorahman Salwi, a Yemeni gentleman resident in Jeddah, concerning the award of the Bronze Great War Medal by the British Government to his late father. He enquired whether as a recipient of this medal there was any entitlement to a pension or any other payment. I advised him that, as far as I was aware, when his father left the service of the Aden Labour Corps (ALC) he would have received his final wages and his service book - there would have been no pension. Abdorahman had in his possession: · Bronze Great War Medal - impressed ADEN L. C. · Service Book - noting General No. 932; Enrolled - Aden, 8 August 1918; Class - Labour Corps; Name - Abdu; Father’s Name - Mohammed Salwi; Rate of Pay - Rupees 15; Comments – “Quite a suitable N.C.O. A well behaved man.” Dated 24 February, 1920, and signed A.H. MacGuffie, Captain Commandant, ALC, Aden Field Force. · Certificate – “for a temporary follower to enable him to obtain any medal or clasp which he may have earned on field service”. This notes Salwi “was attached to the Aden Labour Corps with the Aden Field Force from 8 August 1918 to 29 February 1920”. Online access to Abdu Mohammed Salwi’s medal card at the Public Record Office confirmed that the Bronze War Medal was his sole entitlement. Bronze War Medal Card & © Abdorahman Salwi Further to conversation with Abdorahman I was able to compile a brief biography of his father. Abdo Mohammed Salwi was born in 1898 at Jebel As-Salow near Ta’iz in the south of the Imamate of Yemen. As a young man he had a falling out and a fight with a brother and fearing his father would punish him he fled southwards across the border to Aden. He obtained employment as a tea boy with a British military officer and one day on accompanying him to a military range where poor marksmanship was evident he demonstrated, through an unconventional firing position, that he was a good shot by hitting the center of the target - he was asked to do this again. Later he was asked to come to the military encampment and was offered employment with the Aden Labour Corps and he reached the rank of Lance Naik (Lance Corporal) and assisted in training. His son relates a story of him meeting his officer – probably Captain MacGuffie who commanded the ALC, whilst formally dressed in his weekend prayer best dress and was asked to go to the local market to obtain similar outfits for the other members of the Aden Labour Corps. Following his release from service with the Aden Labour Corps in 1920 he remained in Aden, but in 1924, seeking employment, he travelled to the Hijaz (now the Western Province of Saudi Arabia) and obtained work through the Yemeni Bin Mahfouz company in the construction of the Al Hawia Palace in Taif under the then new Sultan of Nejd and Hijaz, Abdulaziz Al Saud. (In 1932 Abdulaziz became King of Saudi Arabia.) Abdo was later employed by a French maritime company in Djibouti where he worked during the Second World War. At the end of the war he travelled on their vessels transporting phosphates from Casablanca in Morocco to Japan. He then returned to Saudi Arabia and during the reign of King Saud (1953 -64) worked in the Ministry of Finance and obtained de facto Saudi nationality. With the accession of King Faisal the Saudi government reviewed its nationality regulations and as Abdo could not substantiate his claim to Saudi nationality he returned to Yemen. He died in Sana’a, the capital of the Republic of Yemen, in 1985. During his life Abdo was twice married and had three sons and four daughters. With regard to the medal whilst the engraving on the medal itself only designates the unit, on referring to the medal roll the names of the individuals are given and out of the 942 recipients of the medal, the majority were designated Labourers. The remaining ranks are as follows: · Jemader Junior Commissioned Officer x 1 (1374 Abdullah Hassan Abdul Hadi) · Havildar Sergeant x 8 (Including 1 x Acting Havildar) · Naik Corporal x 16 · Lance Naik Lance Corporal x 25 (Including 932 Abdu Mohammed Salwi) · Head Clerk 1 (1376 Syed Mohammed Ali Hussain · Clerk 1 (1377 Mahomed Said Awun) · Sweeper 4 (Including 1417 Budhoo) · Tailor 1 (1382 Ishaq Abdullah) · Servant 2 (1386 Ali Mohamed Yemani & 1387 Said Ahmed Jebali) · Ward Orderly 1 (26 Othman Said Habeshi) · Servant 1 (No number - Mohammed Ismail Somali) The names of the recipients can be split into approximately five groups: · Tribal Yafai, Audali, Alowi, Dthali, Habeshi, etc. · Geographical Somali, Yemani, Mukalla (Coastal Town), Dunkali (in NE Africa), Jebali (Jebel = Mountain) & Salwi (after Mount Salow). · Familial Noman, Bagad, etc. · Patronymic Ahmed bin Ahmed, etc. · Simple Ali Abdulla, Qassim Ghalib, etc. And sometimes a combination of such names such as Ali bin Mohammed Mukalla - i.e. Ali Son of Mohammed from Mukalla, or Ahmed bin Ahmed Shebani - i.e. Ahmed son of Ahmed of the Shebani tribe. According to ‘British Battles and Medals’ the medal, “was issued in bronze to Chinese, Maltese, Indian and other native Labour Corps and also to other native personnel who were mobilized for war service and received pay at military rates.” In comparison to the Silver War medal where some 6,100,000 medals were issued the Bronze Medal is a comparatively scarce award with some 251,000 medals being issued to the various Labour Corps. Known units are designated on the medals as follows: - ADEN L.C., A.B.C. (Army Bearer Corps - an Indian Army designation), CHINESE L.C.; E.L.C. (Egyptian Labour Corps); MACEDONIAN M.C. (Macedonian Mule Corps); MALTESE L.C.; S.A.N.L.C. (South African Native Labour Corps) and 2 L.C. (Second Labour Corps - an Indian Army designation). See Appendix A for a more detailed listing of units. Bronze War Medal 1914-19 Obverse & Reverse © Downies Auctions The ALC would have worked in support of all military activity in Aden during the latter part of the war. I have referred to, “The Diary of Aden Troop 1914-18” (Allahabad Press, 1921) and “A Military History of Aden” (David Eldred, 1967) but neither include any references to the ALC. Similarly there is no reference to any ALC burials in various Commonwealth War Grave publications – any deaths in service would have been attended to by immediate burial in local Muslim cemeteries. Further to details given in Abdu’s service book I was able to obtain on line some biographical details of the Commander ALC. Capt., later Lt. Col., The Revd. Alexander Henley MacGuffie, MBE, c. 1888 - 1983. © http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/69491560/person/30197809802b Capt. MacGuffie’s War Medal Card © PRO Lt. Col. The Revd. Alexander Henley MacGuffie, MBE, first saw service overseas with 1st Battalion the Border Regiment in March 1908 – he also served in the Dardanelles. He joined the Aden Field Force in Aden in 1916 and commanded, as a Captain, the ALC until its disbandment in 1920. He was promoted to substantive Captain, Royal Engineers (Indian Army) 24 October 1921. Following home leave he returned to Aden as Garrison Engineer and in June 1922 married Edel, a Danish missionary in Aden, before returning to England. Subsequently he was posted to India 1924-31 and was employed as a Garrison Engineer in the Punjab. According to the family history he was appointed MBE in 1930 for “civil engineering work with the Indian Army” – see Appendix B. He retired from the Indian Army in 1935. He returned to Aden as a Missionary on 31st May 1936 and was initially attached to the Danish Mission. During World War Two he raised and commanded the Arab Pioneer Corps. He was ordained Deacon in Aden on 19 March 1944 and then as a priest in Cairo Cathedral on Trinity Sunday, 27 May 1945. From 1945-50 he was Chaplain of St. Mary’s Aden Garrison Church. After the closure of the church in 1950, MacGuffie established the House Church in the Mission Station. He left Aden in May 1952 and was appointed in 1954 to Cumberland in the north west of England as Curate of St. Luke’s, Haverigg, and from 1956 to his retirement in 1973 as Vicar of Mungrisdale. He had been transferred in 1923 to India as a Garrison Engineer in the Punjab. Whilst entitled to the War and Victory Medals, the reverse of his War Medal Card notes, “entitled to the emblem” – to date I have been unable to ascertain what this emblem is. In concluding this article I would note my thanks to Abdorhaman Ali Salam Al Selwi for providing the details of his father papers and medal and also for the biographical information about his father. I would especially thank my colleague Khalid Al Shuwaier who acted as interpreter. Appendix A - Bronze War Medal – Known Units (N.B. This is not a definitive listing) Africa African Native Medical Corps Auxiliary Horse Transport (Cape Boys) Basutoland Native Labour Contingent Belgian Oxen Transport (East Africa) East Africa Military Labour Corps Egyptian Labour Corps Nigeria Carrier Corps Sierra Leone Carrier Corps South African Native Labour Corps Uganda Carrier Corps Uganda Transport Corps Asia Aden Labour Corps Ceylon Sanitary Company Chinese Labour Corps Chinese Porter Corps Indian Jail Porter Corps Indian Labour Corps Lahore Labour Corps Manipur Labour Corps Murree Cooley Corps Peshawar Labour Corps Seychelles Carrier Corps Elsewhere Fiji Labour Corps Jewish Labour Corps Macedonian Mule Corps Maltese Labour Corps Appendix B – Captain MacGuffie’s appointment to MBE London Gazette, Supplement 23611, Page 3480 dated 3 June 1930. “To be Members of the Military Division of the said Most Excellent Order: Captain Alexander Henley MacGuffie, Royal Engineers, (Indian Army) Technical Officer (Works) Engineer-in-Chiefs Branch, Army Headquarters India.” Bibliography · Aden Troop, “The Summary of the War Diary of Aden Troop 1914-18”, Allahabad Press, 1921. · Bronze British War Medal Units http://www.britishmedalforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=46913&hilit=labour+corps+bronze · Lord, Cliff & Birtles, David, “The Armed Forces of Aden and the Protectorate 1839-1967”, 2nd Edition, Helion & Coy. Ltd., 2011. · MacGuffie Papers, Middle East Centre, St. Anthony’s College Reference Code GB 0165 0194 http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/35/1232.htm · London Gazette – MacGuffie - Promotion to Captain https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/32820/page/3222/data.pdf · London Gazette – MacGuffie – appointment to MBE https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/33611/supplement/3480/data.pdf · Medal Roll for the Aden Labour Corps, reference WO 329/2368. · Medal image - http://www.downies.com/aca/auction309/Catalogue_004.html Spink, “British Battles and Medals”, Editors, John Hayward, Diana Birch and Richard Bishop, Spink & Son Ltd, London, 2006. · http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hathorn_Hall · http://cosmos.ucc.ie/cs1064/jabowen/IPSC/php/authors.php?auid=28046 · http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/69491560/person/30197809802b © Owain Raw-Rees, August, 2015

Gentlemen, Two further images - obverse only - taken from mixed lots on auctions sites : "Sharaan Pride of Benghazi Lodge No 8368" - this disc has a picture of a building and "Benghazi 1952" - a different jewel to the other Sharaan jewel illustrated above - see post 4 July 2022 & 17 December 2020. A RAOB Korea Lodge No. 9648 jewel bearing the clasp "Twilight of Aden" - similar to that worn on the Aden Lodge jewel - see post 26 January 2020. Perhaps the recipient was based briefly at Aden during 1967? Regards, Owain