Beau Newman

I bought this Commander badge several years ago as the work of a non-German maker. That would make sense since a high proportion of these were awarded to foreigners. Although gold, it is much heavier than the gold examples by the usual Bavarian makers (approx. 70 grams). My first guess would be either an Austrian or Russian maker but, their pieces are usually marked. This piece has no marks at all. Has anyone got any ideas?

I have seen some fake Bavarian MVKs, usually rarer types of the 1st and 2nd Class, on ebay. One dealer in Germany offers them on a regular basis. Later castings of the medals are also seen, especially the Bavarian Bravery Medal. I haven't seen many good fakes of the house orders that would pose much of a problem if you have handled a few good pieces. An excellent reference on Saxon Orders is "Die Orden des Konigreiches Sachsen" by Weber, Arnold and Keil. Copies can sometimes be found on German ebay. Vols. 1 and 3 of Neal O'Connor's "The Aviation Awards of Imperial Germany in World War I" cover Bavaria and Saxony, if you can find them.

The shape of the crown is off, as well. That's why I passed on this one when I saw it.

A chain with both regular and retired pilot's badges. Both the 1st Class EK and Meckl. crosses are vaulted.

Another set - This one with the matching ribbon bar. The detail on the White Falcon mini. is amazing. http://gmic.co.uk/uploads/monthly_06_2009/post-6181-1245897529.jpghttp://gmic.co.uk/uploads/monthly_06_2009/post-6181-1245897564.jpg

From the ribbon, #3 appears to be the 1870/71 campaign medal. To be mounted after the Centenary, #5 is probably something foreign.

FYI - medalnet has an excellent article on his website on this award and points out the small flaw in the last "T" of "VERDIENST" that is seen on wartime issue pieces.

The shoulder board looks like it might be the 153rd Infantry. My guess on the medal would be the later Georg Sachsen-Meinegen SEHO Medal.

That's an interesting mounting of the 1870/71 swords bar. It appears that it penetrates the medal bar backing and is held in place with a wedge. Am I seeing this correctly?

Thanks - That lists over 1,000 killed in a single regiment. That probably means at least another 3,000 wounded. Very grim.

I'm glad to have it but it is frustrating that whoever originally bought this group apparently chose to break it up.

Unfortunately, this is the only piece I have.

A close-up of the name and unit:

Heiko's fantastic photo brought this to mind. I got this old framed document from a mail auction many years ago (very cheap, it's not very impressive looking). I believe that there are decent records on the Prussian MVK. Is there any way to find out what action the recipient (Johannes Berthold - IR 396) recieved this for?

According to Nimmergut, just over 100 were awarded without the red cross device, all just after the Franco-Prussian War, mostly in 1872. According to the statute, as quoted in "Of Red Eagles and Royal Crowns", this ribbon was to recognize those who distinguished themselves by patriotic deeds outside the theater of war. Those in the Voluntary Medical Nursing Units received the award with a red cross device affixed to the top arm.

According to O'Connor, the rolls show 46 total wartime awards but make no specific mention of how many were awarded with swords. Perhaps it was assumed that awards to military personnel would be with swords. On another note, these red centered awards seem to have been made by Busch. This firm is often overlooked because they did mostly Hannoverian and Lippe pieces but, their work was of very fine quality.

I will definitely be getting a copy of that, as well. I know Eric would appreciate the effort you guys are putting into this.

The reverse:

This recent auction purchase arrived today. Very nice hollow gold with just some minor enamel damage on the rose device. Info. is hard to come by but, Neal O'Conner noted that 46 were awarded between 1914 and 1918. With the red center enamel, this is apparently a post-1911 piece. Does more complete information on the Schaumburg-Lippe awards exist?

And a single Bavarian MSO. The full size award is rare. This is the only mini I've seen. http://gmic.co.uk/uploads/monthly_06_2009/post-6181-1245010716.jpghttp://gmic.co.uk/uploads/monthly_06_2009/post-6181-1245010733.jpg

The reverse:

Not much flash but the Wurt. awards are both scarce.

The ribbon is correct for either the combatant's or non-combatant's cross, both of which were bronzed. Only the blackened next of kin cross used a different ribbon, similar to the Franco-Prussian non-combatant's ribbon. The LS medal was for either Reserve or Landwehr service, which could have ranged from front line service in a reserve unit to home guard service in the Landwehr. Even some regular army soldiers received the non-combatant's cross.

The case lid:

In the early type issue case: