tyanacek

reverse:

Hi guys, Here is one from my collection. I would love to have the medal bar to match this ribbon bar. Best regards, Tom

Hello David, 1. The second from last medal on the bar is the NSDAP 10-Year Long Service Cross. It was awarded for 10 years of active membership in the Nazi Party. 2. There are many different variables that affect the condition of a medal bar, such as exposure to ultraviolet radiation, exposure to adverse weather conditions, storage conditions, how many times the bar was worn, and how well was it cared for over the years. It is the same as with any other kind of militaria or anything else for that matter: Examples can be found in mint condition, some will be found in poor condition, and many will be found in varying conditions between the two extremes. Let me say that for medal bars, though, it is not at all unusual to find them in excellent condition. In most cases, medal bars were only worn on a few occasions. They were stored away indoors and cared for by their owners. A medal bar, in many cases, represented a person's career and accomplishments over several decades so I'm sure the owner looked on it with pride and wanted to keep it in the best condition possible. The medal bar I showed in this thread is obviously one that has been well-cared for over the years. Even so, I can tell you that the ribbons and medals on this bar display those subtle signs of natural age that cannot be duplicated by artificial means. The pictures probably do not bring out all these subtle indicators of age but, in-hand, the age and authenticity is so very evident. Best regards, Tom

Thank you for the responses, Paul and Chris. Best regards, Tom

Has anyone ever seen a medal bar with the owner's name written on the back? This is a first for me so I was wondering whether this is legitimate. I suppose it is possible that it really is the owner's name, but with this combination of awards it could never be proven. Best regards, Tom

Here is a picture of the reverse: The Cross of Honor is by Carl Poellath in Schrobenhausen, Bavaria. Seems to make sense that a medal bar assembled in Bavaria would use medals produced by Bavarian manufacturers wherever possible.

Hello Chris, Not only was it a standard practice but it was the regulations. I think Hitler wanted to elevate the prestige of his own regime's decorations while lowering the prestige of Imperial State valor and merit decorations. Best regards, Tom

reverse of bronze FLL Bomber Clasp:

Thank you for the responses. Here is a bronze FLL Bomber Clasp from the 2010 SOS:

Hi Ulsterman, Thanks for sharing your insight. OUCH!!!!!! Knowing Röhm a little too well could get you killed in 1934. Best regards, Tom

Hello CRBeery, I agree that a seven-place bar with all decorations in cross-form is rare indeed. But your comment about going seven places without a "gong" made me laugh. Don't ever recall hearing that terminology for a round medal before, but I will certainly remember it now. Best regards, Tom

Thanks to everyone for the comments. Ulsterman: Thanks for your comments. Yes, I do realize that a bar like this is rare and I also agree with your estimate on a '41 or '42 assembly. I was very lucky to find this bar at the SOS and I can't believe that someone going through the show ahead of me didn't want it. When I look at this bar, I do see the brown uniform of a political leader in Bavaria. Taking it a step further, I wonder: Was this guy from Munich? Maybe a personal friend of the Führer? Could this guy have also been a recipient of the Blutorder? If this guy would have upgraded his medal bar in '44 or '45, would he have had the 25-Year NSDAP LS Cross on his bar? Questions, I'm sure, that will never be answered but it is nice to dream. Best regards, Tom

Thanks for the comments, Scott and Douglas. Douglas: Per 1940 regulations for the Armed Forces and Police, the order of precedence on both the medal bar and ribbon bar are completely correct. The WWI Commemorative Medal for Austria was ranked after the Honor Cross and before Long Service Decorations. As for the reasoning behind this, I think you are probably correct: after the Anschluss of 1938, Austria was now a part of Germany and therefore the medal was elevated in precedence and no longer considered a "foreign" decoration. Still, on some post-Anschluss assembled bars, the Commemorative Medal for Austria continued to be placed at the end of the bar with other foreign decorations. Best regards, Tom

Hello to all, I found this nice TR Police medal bar and Feldspange at the most recent SOS. These items came together as a grouping, but the six-place medal bar does not quite match the seven-place Feldspange. The Feldspange has the WWI Commemorative Medal for Austria on it but the medal bar does not. Best regards, Tom

Hello to all, I was pleased to find this medal bar at the SOS. I had walked through almost the entire show without finding a medal bar that I had to have. Then I found this gem in the third from last row. Hope you like it as much as I do. Best regards, Tom

And a closeup of the written name: Reinhard Giese, Berlin-Buchholz

Here is the reverse:

Hello to all, I found this medal bar at the most recent SOS. I thought it looked nicely aged, but otherwise in great condition. It looks to be a definite TR Period assembly, in my opinion. I found it interesting because the 1936 Olympic Games Commemorative Medal is non-magnetic (which based on my own collecting experience is a scarce thing). The bar also has a name written in ink on the the cloth backing. If the information is correct, then this bar belonged to Reinhard Giese of Berlin-Buchholz. I can't ever recall seeing a name written on the back of a medal bar before. Best regards, Tom

Thank you, Sascha! :cheers:

Rick, This particular scenario never crossed my mind, although it is a possibility. If the orders were removed so that the officer's new medal bar could be assembled, then this would not be a case of vandalism at all: just the remains of his old medal bar. If a new bar was indeed assembled, maybe all replacement medals were used on the new bar except, of course, for the orders. But would a replacement be available for a King George V Coronation Medal? Wouldn't that one need to be removed from the old bar and re-mounted on the new bar? Or would the King George V Coronation Medal not be allowed on a Prussian Officer's WWI Period medal bar? Best regards, Tom

Hello to all, My heart sank when I saw this medal bar on ebay today. What a shame. I will never be able to understand what possesses a person to do such a thing. In the old days of collecting, you didn't have to worry too much about people assembling fraudulent medal bars. Instead, you had a breed of vandal that ripped original medal bars apart to sell off the pieces separately. Here are a few pictures of the sad medal bar and a link to the ebay page with more pictures: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140373722042&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT Best regards, Tom

Yes indeed! Thank you, Uwe, for all that great information and the links too. Very informative. Best regards, Tom

I never realized that the blue & white striped ribbon was an indication of volunteer fire service. Was the crimson-colored ribbon (like seen on the 40-Year Service Medal below) used for regular/professional fire service? Best regards, Tom

Here are a few more examples of his fraudulent handiwork. Study the two bars in the picture below and the similar characteristics are striking. After looking at these two bars, there should be no doubt in your mind that both were made by the exact same person. Think of it as if in being an art museum and you see two different paintings, but you instantly know that both were done by the same artist. The style and technique gives it away. Both of these medal bars were found on the same website, practically side-by-side. In fact, about 80% of the medal bars on this site were the work of the same character. Since original medal bars were assembled by multitudes of different people, what is the likelihood of finding two (let alone twenty) made by the same exact person in the same place decades after the fact? Well, if original, it would be highly unlikely. Even at some of the big military shows, you will see a couple of dealers that have a dozen or so medal bars and, despite the myriad of different medals displayed, the bars all look the same. That is one big red flag that should make you run. The bar at the top (although theoretically possible as a grouping) would be next to impossible to find. The bar at the bottom is absolutely ridiculous and not even theoretically possible as a grouping. As Ulsterman mentioned, this character likes to use obscure foreign decorations to make the bar seem "special" and to awe the unsuspecting. Here are some of the traits that I have noticed: 1. Use of new ribbons, which may or may not glow under ultraviolet light. 2. Large bars having lots of common (cheap) medals. (As Ulsterman mentioned, though, he is trying to be less brazen these days.) 3. Use of obscure foreign decorations. 4. Some real and some fake medals. (On the two bars shown, the Eastern Volunteer Decorations are fake, in my opinion.) 5. Same exact ribbon wrapping, usually with a very flat appearance and little, if any, padding. 6. Almost always, a lack of ribbon rosettes at the bottom of the bar. (Although some original bars are without ribbon rosettes too.) 7. A crude-looking attachment pin with a rough, clipped end. 8. The same exact stitching pattern used for attaching the backing cloth. 9. Some of his bars use original mounting components, but on many others you might be surprised at what you might find under the cloth backing: I have seen some that have a very crude pin hinge that is glued to the backplate with epoxy. The pin catches are usually convincing, but can also be found epoxied in place. 10. Sometimes the ribbons are dirtied in a futile attempt to make them look old. The result always looks artificial and blatant. Best regards & Happy Holidays, Tom

Thanks for sharing your opinions, Claudio and Sascha. Sascha: I think you are right about not trying to replace a cloth backing. I will leave it as is. Best regards, Tom