tyanacek

From the small bit of red thread at the upper left of the reverse (blue circle) and the two areas of pinkish-red staining (yellow circles) I would venture to guess that this bar once had a red colored backing cloth.

last picture:

another picture:

Not much remaining along the top edge except for some spaced out holes were stitches use to hold the cloth backing in place. From in-hand examination, it looks like there were once diagonal stitches leaning to the right.

picture 2

Hello Ulsterman, I took some closer pictures of the stitching on the back of the ribbons. I hope these pictures are of what you wanted to see.

OK I went and did it. I switched the Kyffhäuserbund Medal with a KVK2X. Please don't think me a vandal!

Hi Matt, No hooks on this one. The suspension rings are sewn down to the under wrap ribbon. I wish it had hooks: it would make for an easy switcheroo! But your ebay theory is another very plausible explanation. Best regards, Tom

Hello Ulsterman, Thanks for your opinion about restoring it. I do not understand what you mean by "close up of the backs' edges." Are you talking about the edges of the ribbons or what? The entire medal bar checks ok under ultraviolet radiation. There is no glowing to any of the ribbons nor to the heavy thread. There is no noncom EK2 ribbon used on this bar for the under wrap. The under wrap ribbon is for the next-of-kin 1914-1918 Honor Cross. Best regards, Tom

Here is the reverse: (This would be a great picture for a reference book, except that it helps the fakers too.)

Hello to all, I found this nice medal bar on ebay of all places. I am confident that this is a WWII-Period assembly, but the Kyffhäuserbund Medal in the second position does not really belong on this bar. I would think that it originally had a 1939 KVK2X where the Kyffhäuserbund Medal is now. Maybe this substitution was done by the recipient himself as a way of de-nazifying the bar after WWII? As a WWI vet, he probably had one of these Kyffhäuserbund Medals laying around somewhere and since the ribbon is similar to a 1939 KVK2, the substitution almost seems logical. Impossible to know for sure, though. The Bavarian MVO4X is an early WWI issue by Gebrüder Hemmerle. It has real gold center medallions. The reverse of the bar is kind of neat, because the backing cloth is long gone. It allows for a nice view of how the bar was assembled. I have actually given some thought about "restoring" this bar: putting a 1939 KVK2X back on the bar and replacing the cloth backing if for no other reason than to protect the stitching on the reverse. Maybe this would be considered historical vandalism, though, and it is best to leave the bar as is? I welcome any and all opinions in regard to this. Best regards, Tom

Thanks to all for the responses. Best regards, Tom

one more picture from the ebay page:

Hi Guys, Saw this Red Eagle Order on ebay. Looks like a 4th model Grand Cross in silver-gilt. I have no idea whether this is real or not, but it looks very well-made. I can only assume that originals of these are extremely rare and practically unobtainable. I would also think that there are some high-quality, museum copies of these around. If this is original, though, it would be a bargain for $7500. Here is a link to the ebay page: http://cgi.ebay.com/DEC528-ORDER-OF-RED-EAGLE-PRUSSIA_W0QQitemZ370292054277QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item5637205905 Here are a couple pictures from the ebay page: Best regards, Tom

Hello Christophe, Do you happen to know the name of the court jeweler that used the 'EE' marking? Thank you & best regards, Tom

Hi Phil, Thank you so much for your kind words. And thank you for purchasing a copy of my book. I'm glad to hear that you like it. Best regards, Tom

Hello Christophe and Vince, Thank you both, so much, for the information. Wow! I see that Bury & Leonhardt of Hanau was the court jeweler that produced the Breast Star of the Ernestine House Order with Swords and Diamonds for Sovereigns. I wouldn't mind having one of those! Shown on Andreas Schulze-Ising's wonderful site: http://www.medalnet....f_Ernestine.htm Best regards, Tom

Hello Christophe, Sorry for the delay in responding to your inquiry. I have looked at all of the areas that are visible on this Order and I have been unable to locate a maker mark. I figured, if anywhere, a marking would be on the rim of the lower cross arm, but no such luck. Any idea where I might look for a marking? Maybe these were seldom, if ever, marked? If it would be located somewhere on the reverse, I'm afraid I'll just have to abandon the search as the piece is securely fastened and I would never risk damaging the bar in the hope of finding a maker mark. I know very little about this particular Order. Who are the known makers of these? Is there any way to determine the maker by the details of the center medallion, swords, lions, etc? If you, or anyone else, can determine the maker by seeing closeups of the details, let me know and I will post some better pictures. Thank you for any and all assistance! Best regards, Tom

Hello Naxos, Thank you very much for your assistance. Any idea who's signature is on the Russian Front document? Battalion Commander in October of 1942. Best regards, Tom

I really like this Demjansk Shield document as I never owned one before. It has the usual facsimile signature of General der Infanterie, Graf von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt. Also, the signature of this Oberleutnant seems to be encountered on the majority of Demjansk Shield documents. Does anyone know who this particular Oberleutnant was? Some sort of adjutant? Thanks for any and all assistance! Tom

He received his "Frozen Flesh Medal" in October of 1942: This Oberstleutnant and Battalion Commander's signature is also a mystery to me. Anyone have an idea on this?

The Wound Badge in Black was awarded in September of 1942, for a first-time wounding that occurred on August 17, 1942.

The citation for the EK2 cites two specific actions on two different dates which earned him his EK2: On December 21, 1941, at the counterattack near Wyssotschek, he led his group with great courage and stormed a trench, occupied by the Russians. On January 11, 1942, he distinguished himself in the attack on Beglowa by personal bravery and uncompromising action. (The citation is signed by the Kompanie-Führer, Leutnant Griebenow.)

He received his EK2 in January of 1942: The EK2 document is signed by Generalleutnant Kurt von Tippelskirch.

Here is a six-document grouping to an Unteroffizier that served with the 2nd Kompanie of Pionier-Bataillon 30. The Czech Annexation Medal was awarded in March of 1940: (He was actually assigned to the 1st Kompanie at this particular time.) I cannot figure out who the Battalion Commander was that signed this document. The signature does not match up to information on Lexikon der Wehrmacht. Does anyone know who this Major was? Best regards, Tom