Linasl

Hello. I have a medal with all lettering written in Arabic Script. I asked an Arabic friend of mine to translate it, and he stated that the top bar says something to the effect of "Given by the President of the Country" + "High Supreme Council for Lebanon and Africa". Then on the star medallion itself - "Given by Lebanese Council", and in the center it has the number "33" (Masonic?). I have attached a low resolution photo of the star medallion here, but I have high resolution photos in a PhotoBucket Album here: http://s752.photobuc...banese%20Medal/ I purchased this medal with the Masonic Badge for the 33rd Degree (last photo), so I do not know if the main medal is military, civil, or Masonic. Any help in translating the Arabic Script (if my friend didn't get it right) and actually identifying the medal itself would be great. Thanks in advance. Linas

Hello. I have two medals I believe are from the Ottoman Empire. I know they are not expensive, but I would still like to identify what they were made for. I attached a low resulution photo of one of them, but I have four high resolution photos in a Photobucket Album here: http://s752.photobucket.com/albums/xx168/linasl/Ottoman%20Medals/ Any assistance would be appreciated, especially for the first one. Thank you. Linas

Thank you Avsar. Linas

Hello. I have two medals that appear to be Ottoman (or some other Arabic country). I have attached a low resolution photo of the front of one to this medals, but I have high resolution photos of BOTH medals in a PhotoBucket album, at this link: http://s752.photobuc...toman%20Medals/ Can anyone help me identify one or both? Thank you. Linas

To all. The three top bidders on this Breast Star have been tracking THIS conversation on the GMIC before they bid. Each of them contacted me and I mentioned all the concerns listed by many of you - I had no problem doing that. Thus, they knew what they were bidding on. Yet they bid. I don't know what to conclude from this, but next time I will let all of you judge the authenticity of my Ottoman medals before I place them for sale. Now I would appreciate if we could put this matter to rest. Thank you. Linas

Hello Uwe. With all due respect, sellers/dealers ARE serving the military collecting community ... Where else do the collectors purchase the items they collect? As for my comments about Google, I was asking about a specific medal for which I would not know what key words to enter because it was out of my area of expertise and in a language I do not know. This forum provides me with out 2-3% of the information I use for all the medals I post regularly. I use whatever sources I can to make sure I get it right and the military collecting community buys what they are looking for. I have a question for all of you who have berated me : have any of you looked at the 100+ medals I list about every three weeks? A significant amount of research goes into ALL of my descriptions. Only some of it comes from this forum. Also, I ask you to go through my feedback profile and see how all my winning bidders appreciate my thoroughness, promptness, and attention to all matters concerned with every transaction (except for the one guy I couldn't please no matter what). Everyone here seems to be willing to throw stones - many stones - at me, yet you have no idea what amount of time I put into everything I place on the auction site. Nor do any of you know me personally, yet you are more than willing to attack my character. Why is that? It is 12:45 am and I am still hard at work. Plus I need to keep my day job. So before any of you throw anymore stones, please look inside yourselves and see if you are completely infallible. Thank you. Linas

Thank you. Linas

Hello Michael. I appreciate your honest response - even if it is a bit of a critique. Sometimes I need to hear that. I buy medals from all over the world, so it is impossible for me to be an expert on all. That is why I turn to THIS Forum for knowledge - always asking the same questions, because all are always relevant. As it regards to helping me write my descriptions, absolutely! Is there something wrong with that? I want expertise, so I turn to the GMIC membership for help. And I always acknowledge my assistance from this Forum, even in adding the Forum's website address to attract more collectors to the GMIC. I do not believe I am doing a disservice to the GMIC - quite the opposite. But I DO understand your comments and I appreciate your candor. As for the lack of bookstores, I honestly don't recall that. If I said that, I retract it. Most of my research is on the internet. There are MANY great sites - even for this Breast Star. I saw MANY photos of this Star and they looked VERY similar to mine. Thus, I made the simple deduction that mine is authentic. Did I make an error? I hope not, but others believe I did. So where do we go from here? Well, I plan on continuing to reach out to the GMIC membership in assisting in my research. If some members are "turned off" by my requests for info, I understand and accept this hesitance. But to me there is no better source - which is a compliment to you, to the other members, and to the creators of this Forum. Lastly, for those wondering "What is this guy up to?" - I am just trying to make an honest living by buying and selling medals I believe people will be interested in. I may not always get it right (and I "fix" that to the extent possible), but I always try to be as honest and forthright as possible. Just look at ALL the feedback comments I have. I have clients who have been buying from me for 10 years, and keep coming back for more. I believe I am a good guy who tries to offer a wide variety of medals that are of interest to all kinds of different people. In closing, I again want to thank you for your analysis of me. I believe it is fair and balanced. I though hope my explanation above serves to calm nerves of those participating in this thread. But I know that you can never satisfy everone all the time. Take care. Linas

Hello Demir. I would graciously ask you to remove my name from your "Beware of these sellers" list. I believe it is inappropriate and demeaning. Your choice. Thank you. Linas

Hello Avsar. Thank you for your note. At least it is more civil than previous posts. When I look at the photos you provided, I personally do not see a difference to the one I have. Maybe I do not have an expert eye like you have, but it does not change my mind. Unforunately I am NOT an expert in Ottoman medals, but I do not understand why known experts are bidding on the one I have listed. This shall remain a mystery, I guess. Linas

Hello Josef. Thank you for your gentile response. It is a pleasant break from the spiteful comments above. I see what you are saying, but I still stand behind my comments. Your photos are OK though. Thanks. Linas

Greetings once again. Just to make sure I am not going crazy, I went back to look at all the bidders on the Breast Star in question. As I thought I remembered, one of the bidders (but not the highest) is one of the most recognized experts in military medals in the US. He has written FIVE books on the subject, including one solely on Breast Stars. I cannot mention his name out of privacy, but his last name starts with a "V". If you are an aficionado of medals, you should recognize this individual. So why would HE be bidding if the Breast Star is a fake? Is he not an expert and just stupid? Or is there the slightest of possiblities that those of you who so callously belittled me, my pseudo, and my Breast Star may be wrong? Even if you are wrong, I do not expect any one of you to admit to such a personal mistake. Thus, I have no intention of removing the Breast Star and I stand by my assertion that it IS original. Thank you. Linas

Hello Avsar. Based on this member's photo you are able to 100% determine his 4th Class Medjidie Order on the right side is ORIGINAL? How can you make this determination when you cannot even see it up close? Linas

Hello. I am the seller LINASL. I am offended by these posts, especially those that attack my character. If you check my feedback on the site someone mentioned, it is 99.9% - 1 negative out of over 6200 positives, and the negative came from someone who never received his package AND I refunded his money. He was just a cruel individual. As for the Breast Star, let me first mention that I purchased it from a Turkish colleague who stated to me it was from his great grandfather. He even showed me a photo of his great grandfather wearing the Star. I had no reason to believe it is not original, even though I am not an expert in Ottoman medals. For the individual who started this thread saying my star has "pink" in the center, this is blatantly incorrect. Look at the photos again - it is RED. Maybe my lighting is not the best, but it is NOT pink. The other two Ottoman medals I have listed came from the same individual, but I see no mention here that those two are fake as well. So how do all you "experts" reconcile the disparity? Also, why are there bidders who ARE experts in militaria and have very high feedback scores even bidding on this Breast Star? I know many of the bidders and have been doing business with them for quite a few years. Please explain because I am dumbfounded by the negativity I see on this post by my "fellow experts" - yes, that is intended sarcasm. As for the sarcastic member (and wholly ungentlemanlike) who quipped that my Breast Star is "GUARANTEED ORIGINAL" as if I was some kind of crooked dealer - you seemed to forget to complete the paragraph. I DO guarantee originality. If, once you receive the item, a recognized expert determines that it is NOT original, I will refund ALL your money 100% - including postage fees. So yes, I do "GUARANTEE ORIGINAL." As for the individual who listed my eBay pseudo as a seller you should avoid, I am left speechless. What gives you the right to libel me in such a way given the many thousands of successful trnasactions I have had selling on that site for 10 years? You do not know me, nor the amount of research time I spend to make sure what I list is real and proper. Lastly, if by chance my Breast Star is NOT original, I will gladly refund the winner's money. If YOU don't believe it is original - DON'T BID - it is that simple. Now all you "experts" can have your "enjoyment" rebutting my comments here. I know some of you will because you appear to be just as cruel as the ONE individual who left a negative mark on my otherwise PERFECT feedback score. Thank you. Linas

Thank you Iain for your support. My expert has seen them all - all variations and all fantasy pieces. After 50 years of collecting, researching (in the US, Poland AND Russia) and writing books on the subject, I think he knows what he is talking about. There is probably not many in this world who know more about this subject than him. Linas

Hello. Thank you for your comments. I believe I clearly stated the differences in the Star and let people judge for themselves. As for my expert, he clearly noted the six-point star, yet he fully believes this is an authentic star and not a fantasy. Given his 50 years of expertise, I will stick with his assessment. Thanks. Linas

Greetings. Disappointing, but that is how collecting goes. Thank you both for your responses. Linas

Greetins all. I just acquired a breast star that I think is German FreiKorps. I have attached a photo (not the highest of quality, but that is all the seller provided). Can anyone tell me anything about it, like if it IS FreiKorps, what is it called, what was it issued for, who was eligible to receive it, what was its lifespan, is it rare? Any and all information is welcome. Thank you in advance. Linas PS: yes, the top blue enamel is chipped off.

Shall to so. Linas

Thanks once again Iain. Linas

Thank you Iain. Linas

Hello Uwe. Thank you for the links. Just so you know, I ask "the same questions" on THIS forum for two reasons: 1. this is one of the reasons I thought this forum exists. 2. I would not know what key words to enter in Google (maybe I'm an idiot, so I refer back to my first point). Linas

Thank you Claudius. Linas

Thank you very much Paul. Take care. Linas

Hello Claudius. I will send better photos when I receive the medal. But I have never known a "jeton" to have a crown and loop (for ribbon suspension). Can you please explain? Thank you. Linas