paul wood

Very nice indeed, look forward to seeing more pictures when it arrives. Paul

Thank you both for your explanations, I understand now why you don't see them. Paul

Next time I get a chance I will check if I can get a definitive date, certainly with the coinage the bust changed from a bare-headed bust to a laureate bust in 1861. I would imagine the change would be around that time. Paul

Thank you so much for showing the document. Paul

Yes the introduction of the Order of national Merit in in 1964 was a great shame is it got rid of some considerably more attractive orders, typical Gaullist centralism. Paul

I am going senile, I forgot I had a perfectly genuine one in a collection which we are storing until further instructions. For your information weight including ribbon and suspension pin 27.89g. May be useful for spotting fakes. Paul

Kevin, Sorry to sound a bit of an ignoramus but were these bars ever issued with the medal, I have seen many examples of the medal but never one with a bar, or are they like the British WWI naval bars, proposed but never issued. Paul

Who would want one of these things? After my journey into work today I could to some serious damage in Southern Railways and Transport for London's offices with one of those. Paul

I wonder of anyone can be of assistance. I do not have one to hand (and won't for at least a couple of weeks) can any one give me the correct weight of a WWI Military Cross. Paul

An easy one. Stalin was heavily decorated and received many awards both Soviet and other counties. He also received two Soviet republic or autonomous territory awards, one in 1922 (before he was famous), the other 1943, name them. Paul

No 3 dates from 60s-70s (I used to have a similar badge around 1970 with PREFECT on it, it was great for extracting protection money from younger pupils). Paul

Thanks for these posts most useful, I have been approached by an individual who has such a piece (cased) alas his idea of price is more fantastic than the prospect of time travel in the next five years. Paul

A lot of the mixing comes from the time when Japanese order boxes were often sold in groups separately from the medals as dealers could get more by selling the lacquer boxes and medals separately than they could together. I suspect many of the groups of empty cases have lately turned up and have now been (inexpertly) married up with orders. Paul

God that is truly awful, makes the coin look a masterpiece. Paul

George, I specifically refer to the initial allied intervention in 1861 following the Mexican default on foreign loans, the following is taken from a talk I gave last year on the Interventions and the Empire of Maximilian

Brezhnev awarded himself the Order of Victory in 1978 (I think the vodka must have been specially good that year) it was revoked posthumously in 1989 for not meeting the requirements of the award. Paul

The belief that the arms race was one of the major factors of WWI lead to the failure of Britain to rearm sufficiently prior to WWII. There was a belief that if we didn't rearm then others would also not do so, however AH didn't paly by the rules. Paul

Good point Don, perhaps this should be considered. Paul

Thanks for the clarification Rishi. Paul

He earned his awards for landing at Vera Cruz as it was a plague hole riddled with yellow fever (It nearly did for allied landing leading to the French intervention). Paul

One of the few people who I know enjoyed the Great War was my great uncle Maurice (Adams), a Bristolian who served in the Boer war and was later a sniper in the Great War, he did very well out of the booty he picked up. A notorious womaniser (he claimed to have fathered a fair number of the children in Oldland Common), He died in 1975 aged 98 after falling downstairs having had far too much to drink (but just the way he would have wanted to go). Very few other enjoyed the war apart from the very poor who it released from tedious monotony and near starvation and drudgery. Paul

The medal magazine, Medal News, published by Token Publishing does a medal tracking service. probably the widest circulating medal magazine globally. You should be able to access the service on-line. Paul

Joseph, I think at the price you paid you should have no problem, I suspect a few members would be happy to pay that for it. Paul

Nice find, certainly an award I would be unlikely to be entitled to. Paul

It there any sensible reference work for these medals? Paul