larsb001

I have bought from "Emonlaib" on eBay at several occations and I have never had any problems, everything went smooth and the items were as described.

Hello Joseph and Paul, thank you both for your comments, as usual most helpful. /Lars

All, I just realized that there were an inscription on the reverse of a Mentana cross I have. As I read it it's "2230" and "1. DE I" or "1. DE L" - would anybody have an clue of what this stands for? Soldiers number and regiment, in case, which one? /Lars

A Prussian "Ölberg Kreuz" .. A nice Order of Berthold from Baden ...

Now this tread have been activated again, I can add a few as well. A nice Godet chain, nothing special, but I have been looking for the Red Cross Merit medal from Württemberg for some time! Two versions of the War Commemorative Cross 1813-1814 from Anhalt-Dessau. A somewhat rare seen Order of Louise 2nd class 1865 version

Beautiful

I was recently looking for something else and came across some pages dealing with masonic stuff, refound them just now with a simple google search, could it perhaps have something to do with these gentlemen from the "Lodge Islam"? Seems to be a popular theme, we can probably rule out these 4 danish comedians who have created a highly popular show called "Sons of the Desert" - due to age But perhaps you'll find useful info in this book:

And also a thank you for the info from here, I actually never realized that the lower grades could be "bought". I bought the group at a local auction here, the ribbons are a typical Danish mounting so I'm quite convinced that the recipient was actually a Dane. A miniature group was present as well Regards, Lars

Thanks for your comments, it may be so, I just assumed that the Red Cross organization would political independant, so although they changed the design it would still be a continued award. And yes, it's a Danish mounting, so if you're having one on a similar ribbon it have most likely been worn by a Dane! /Lars

I got this nice group recently, it contains an Austrian 1923 Red Cross Order (quite rare with only 89 awards) as well as an 1864-1914 Red Cross Order plus an Portugese Red Cross Order. I assume the two Austrian decorations would basically be the same award given in Imperial times and during the Republic. Have anybody seen such a combination before and would it have been normal practise to award both?

Thank you for your opinion allthough I had hoped for an ID. So it still remains a mystery.

Although a miniature decoration I believe it could be this award? /Lars

A little help from our Norwegian members would be appreciated. I have had this miniature medal for some time, I cannot figure out what it is, but am hoping for a little help here. I assume it's Norwegian because it's made by Tostrup, but it can of course be from somewhere else. Any help here? /Lars

Both, thank you for a prompt answer and clarification that the document doesn't belong to the group - which I had assumed for many years. /Lars

This group I sold 20 years ago, now I got it back. Nothing amazing, but a nice simple group. The bravery medal is silver, but without hallmarks of any kind, yet an attactive sharp striking. Originally it came together with this document, but I actually don't know if they match, maybe someone here can confirm that this is the correct document for this medal, and if not, what it is? /Lars

Good evening Andreas. Of course you would have an example on a bar, thanks for showing. Is yours Silver as well or is it bronze gilded? /Lars

All, I recently got this, Is it correct that the ribbon is the same as for the House Order, 35 mm and equal sized red stribes? Would anybody have a length of original ribbon or should I turn to eBay? According to Schemeit this should be gilded bronze, but this piece is gilded Silver (marked 930 as I see it). Assuming Schemeit is correct, is this then a private purchase or earlier/later type or did they came in both gilded bronze and Silver? Would anybody here have a spare miniature of this decoration? /Lars

922F, just a quick remark, Kai Meyer made restrikes of several Danish medals (mostly with original dies which he borrowed from the Mint, still they differs from the originals), but never foreign Orders, but he may very well have sold them as with other items (3rd Reich stuff) he bought from for example Souval.

As a miniature collector I can only say that such groups is a minefield. You don't have to have much experience before you realize that a large number of British collectors take pride in creating groups from loose miniatures in the late evening hours. In many cases it's impossible to separate a made up group from an original group, but you could have a look at the ribbons, how they are faded, how the individual miniatures are toned etc. I cannot say weather this is a original group and the suggested explanation of the GC having been awarded 20 years later is valid or if this is made up group created to be "representative" of someone or .... You can easily find a large number of similar groups on eBay, but you can never know which ones are good or not. You do have to note that many British collectors have a completely different view on such things than many others. Some years ago a very nice WW1 VC miniature group was sold on auction. It was a nice framed set of a Pilot, in the (old) frame there were a picture of the man, a flying wing, a regimental badge and a miniature group consisting of a VC and a WW1 trio. The group fetched a VERY high price. After the auction I asked some British collectors of how this could happen, my take was that the Pilot was killed in a crash in 1916 and was awarded the VC posthumous and I couldn't simply understand how this pilot could have worn a miniature group consisting of a posthumous award and a trio that were introduced several years after his death. We never reached any form of agreement, but I understood that if a family member had assembled this group up to 30 years later in memory of the deceased pilot this could without problems be seen as said pilots personal miniature group, and this would demand a high price. I believe my point is that you can show a picture here, but apart from the obvious mistakes I think it's impossible for most to judge, we can only say "I believe", so if you're in doubt, leave it.

Paul & Owain, thank you both for your comments. /Lars

All, I assume this is arabic, but I cannot read it. It would be appreciated if anyone could tell me if this is military related or simply a piece of jewellery? It appears unmarked. /Lars

Hello Gord, and welcome to the forum! To me this looks like the Swedish Civil Defence Merit medal in gold (came in silver as well). Does this make sense? /Lars

Michael, welcome to this Forum, and thank you for the additional comments, I never realized this should be so educational when posting the 3 miniatures and a simple question. /Lars

Hello "Rusty" and Uwe, thank you for taking the time to dig into this, I would now have a much better understanding of the evolution of this Order, it was quite interesting to learn this. /Lars

Hello E.L., although a little different topic than the original post I'd like to understand the difference between the chain for a "Kommandeur mit dem Stern" and a "Kommandeur", I have allways assumed they were identical. Given this distinction I assume this set from my collection qualifies as beeing a chain for a "Kommandeur mit dem Stern" but how would a "Kommandeur" look like? I have seen different type were the eagles have a different spread but have assumed this was due to different manufacturers. /Lars