Hendrik

ZA?RE : for operations between 13 May 1978 and 1 July 1990 ... Seems you were indeed just to late for that one and too early for the R?PUBLIQUE DU CONGO (from 6 June 1997 onwards).

Thanks for the compliment on my site, Chris/Jack I'll be most happy to oblige and answer questions to the best of my ability on this, one of my favourites, topic ... Pictures of medals and/or bars posted would be great as they may lead to discovering "new" (as in previously unknown) types. By way of example, I've not yet seen the "Mission Saharienne", "Gabon-Congo" for the Colonial Medal or even the bar for the 'Democratic Republic of Congo' operations for the Overseas Medal.

Ha, a truly dedicated collector I see Let us have some pictures when they land at your place, please !

Just venturing a pure guess and showing my complete ignorance : Chrutsjev (or whatever you want to spell his name like) ?

Hi Paul, the little red crosses are an indication of being wounded in combat. Per such wound one cross was attached to the ribbon. Note : WW1 red crosses are 1 cm, WW2 or later ones half that size. Economical reasons I guess

Surely not the case today though ? I served with BELU Forces in Bosnia, they formed part of our defence at Lipa (they were at TSG) and they were issued their medals before their departure home ? As far as I know, that still is the case today and has been so since WW I (maybe even earlier ???) I'm sure your eyes weren't playing tricks at the time but couldn't those medals be UN or EU ones ? If the Belgian medal, it would have looked like this one (minus the bars) : [attachmentid=17560] Pardon my ignorance but what does TSG stand for ? So in Belgium all official medals earn't for durations of peace keeping, or wars/conflicts like Korea, WW2, WW1 and other, the soldiers had to buy their own campaign, victory & service medals etc. Afraid so, at least veterans that had returned to civilian life did ... your Bosnia experience may mean this is not so for military personnel still on active duty. Will try to find out. Also, as a friend of mine recently told me after having been awarded a long service medal for his years of service with the Belgian railroads, he only received the certificate without the actual medal which he has to purchase himself if he cares to do so. What exactly is the criteria for awarding of medals, or is there some where I could find further information about this please ? Well now, without wanting to appear to be promoting my site too much, you might venture over to www.medals.be ... and return here to start new threads and/or ask further details

Hello Tony, Gorgeous one ! Am I correct in saying that yours is a renamed medal or one with the naming erased ?

Thanks Tony ! Any idea on when they first saw the light of day ?

got the (ribbon) variation that is now fairly rare. I think you can call this ribbon variation "very rare" Very nice example of the medal on this original ribbon - good show !

Greetings All, I have these two medals in my collection and bar their name have no information on them ... Would love to learn more about them : when created, award criteria, historical background etc. etc. [attachmentid=17472] Queen Alexandra's Imperial Nursing Service Medal [attachmentid=17471] Queen Alexandra's Imperial Nursing Service Reserve Medal

Hello All, This medal is certainly amongst my favourites as far as British campaign medals go. Besides having lots of possible bar combinations which makes it a collector's dream, I'm also aware that different versions exist which can be identified on the medal's reverse : 1. Britannia holding the wreath to the letter "R" in Africa with underneath the dates 1899-1900 2. Same but with dates removed but still visible, aka "ghost dates" 3. Britannia holding the wreath to the letter "F" in Africa (no dates) and 4. "Mediterranean" instead of "South Africa". Of the first issue it would appear less than 70 were ever awarded and only to one unit, Lord Strathcona's Horse. Has anyone ever seen such a medal and, even more interesting, taken a picture of it which can be posted here ? I'd love to see one Here's one with the Mediterranean reverse : [attachmentid=17468]

Nice one there Dave ! One of those cute unofficial ones due to the 1925 being in front. I've also come across (reliable) text references to a "LEVANT 1926-27" and "SYRIE-CILICIE" bar - if anyone has a picture of those ... feel free to post it !

Hadn't spotted the emedals one when posting the previous and I beg to differ : looks fine to me and two for that price too ! The one with the Bir Hacheim 1942 bar is, I think, quite nice. Ask those guys if there's the word "BRONZE" on the reverse of the horizontal ribbon suspension bar (not visible because of the ribbon) : if so, it's a type described in the Jean Hass book - unknown manufacturer but quality striking. If you're not interested, do let me know as I may have a go at it then.

Looks as if that's the Paris Mint one but well overpriced in my humble opinion

Ha, my favourite one amongst the bars for this medal In fact, there are two of them : "BIR HACHEIM 1942" and "BIR HAKEIM" resp. created on 1 Oct. 1942 and 7 Jan 1944. It is assumed the recreation in 1944 is for phonetic reasons ... Different versions ? You bet ! - Paris Mint, oriental style, silver (Bir Hakeim) - Arthus-Bertrand, rectangular, silvered (Bir Hacheim 1942) [attachmentid=17382] - unknown manufacturer, rectangular, very grainy background, greyish blue metal (Bir Hacheim 1942) - sorry, no picture, but it can be found in the superbly excellent book on the French Colonial Medal by the late Jean Hass, French language only I'm afraid. And then there is this one which has me stumped ... could be any of a number of manufacturers and the above book doesn't show it at all ! [attachmentid=17383] Medals with this bar (usually not found with just the one bar but with others on the ribbon as well) have seemingly become much rarer than a couple of years ago when one would have expected to purchase them for some 30 - 40 US $ (depending on the other bars). Nowadays they are much more sought after, far more rarily available in "the market" and could, I imagine, be double that price or more ... Too expensive if so, I agree, and perhaps patience is to be advised : one hopes there will be others appearing for sale some day. If the present one you're alluding to has other bars (feasible within the time frame !!! Check that !!!) and is about 50 - 60 US $, I'd say "go for it" ! Good luck !

Yes, Christophe, that's the one ...

Last one for today I think In one of the previous I mentioned : There was indeed no clasp for this "Medal of the Levant" ... at least not officially, more on that later. I was referring to the type made by the London firm of John Robert Gaunt who also made the medal for the Free French during WW2. The medal is easily identified : it has a much darker colour, usually referred to as "chocolate", a much better detail, laurel branches on the suspension instead of the palm branches used by French manufacturers and "J.R.G." at 4 o'clock on the reverse. Also, the foremost flag does not have the "SYRIA CILICIA" text, only the "HONNEUR ET PATRIE" and there are - quite correctly - no references on this medal to Georges Lemaire as this one was engraved by the London firm itself. [attachmentid=17367] Although not officially created, the bar is of exactly the same colour and craftmanship as the medal and there can be little doubt that it was also manufactured by Gaunt at the time. Definitely my favourite amongst all of them [attachmentid=17371]

[attachmentid=17364] Paris Mint bar for the Vichy award, this one has the Mint's marking and "1" for sterling silver on the reverse. Note it's hyphenated ... [attachmentid=17363] Maker unknown, no hyphen, smaller font ... possibly the original strike for this bar ? Info is welcome ! [attachmentid=17361] A rectangular one, has "BRONZE" on its wide suspension bar ... again, information is welcomed !

Some more pictures of various strikings ... [attachmentid=17353] Silvered bronze bar made by Mourgeon [attachmentid=17355] Very likely from the Arthus-Bertrand firm ... [attachmentid=17356] Silvered bronze bar, rectangular, possibly made by Marie-Aubert

Hello Ed, Magnificent start of this thread with lots of useful information ! Thanks for that To continue on it, I would like to point out a few details : In the short lifespan of this medal, it was officially known under three names : the original "Commemorative Medal for Syria-Cilicia" as instituted by the French Republic in 1922, the Vichy regime's "Commemorative Medal for the Levant" (1941) and the Free French "Medal of the Levant" (1942). The medal was awarded to soldiers and sailors who served in action from 11 November 1918 to 20 October 1921. ... But also to those who after that date participated in actions which are stipulated in later decrees. In fact, it can be said that such operations extended to approx. mid-1939 as the last such decree seems to be dated 16 October 1939. I have the texts of the decrees detailing the operations for which the medal was awarded up till and including the decree of 28 April 1934. Anyone having a later decree, do give me a shout !!! Also awarded by the Free French Government in London for the actions against the Vichy French and others in the Levant from 12 July 1941 to 14 August 1943. The medal is the same as the Syria-Cilicia Medal (without clasp?). I'm afraid I have to disagree on this : to my knowledge the London medal was not for actions against the Vichy French but only for operations in the 12 July 1941 (the date the fighting officially ended !) to 14 August 1943 period (or for military personnel that had served for a minimum of 2 years in the region). There was indeed no clasp for this "Medal of the Levant" ... at least not officially, more on that later. With the addition of a bar, the same medal was reissued for operations in 1925-26 and 1941. Reissued for campaigns in the Levant 1925-26 with a bar: "1925-1926"; awarded for Jebel Druze and the taking Soueida? Not as simple as that : some 30 operations/combat actions etc. are indicated in various decrees as being valid for entitlement to this bar which should officially read "LEVANT 1925-1926" ... Operations in the Djebel Druze are indeed amongst those but also those in other areas e.g. Damascus, Aleppo, "Grand Liban", the Euphrates region. Couln't find a reference to Soueida in those though. Obverse: Bronze 30 mm (also seen in 35 mm medals) circular medal. The head of the Republic and the inscription "REPUBLIQUE FRANCAISE". The official medal, as manufactured by the Paris Mint is 30 mm (different types exist but all have this diameter). The 36 mm one was manufactured by the private firm of Arthus-Bertrand, also in Paris. All show the engraver's name : Georges Lemaire at 7 o'clock. Reverse: An arrangement of flags and cannon, arrayed to attack a hilltop fort. Inscription "LEVANT" around the top edge of the medal and "Honneur et Patrie / Syrie-Cilicie" (in 4 lines) on the frontmost of the flags. Engraver's initials at 5 o'clock. -- "LEVANT" bulbous ornamental bronze bar of "oriental" design (for 1918-21) ... I've so far come across 11 different strikings of this one, including a silvered (!) oriental type and 2 silvered rectangular ones. -- "LEVANT / 1925-1926" - ornate bulbous bronze bar of "oriental" style with inscription in Roman script in two lines ... I think you refer to the type made by the firm of Mourgeon, a gilded one with specific ornaments proper to this manufacturer and missing the "19" in "1926" ... and which in view of that should, I think, be considered as "unofficial". [attachmentid=17343] Above picture : one of at least two of the Mourgeon strikings : no maker's marks on this bar whereas there is one known with two maker's marks on it : a boar's head and "L*M", both referring to this manufacturer). -- "LEVANT 1925-1926 - ornate bulbous bronze bar of "oriental" style with inscription in ornate script in a single line ... once again, this would be a gilded bar (so far I've knowledge of three strikings of this one, one being the Paris Mint type). [attachmentid=17342] This one looks like the Paris Mint type but it isn't one ... I have no clue as to who the manufacturer was. Anyone with a suggestion ? -- "LEVANT 1941" - a bulbous ornate bronze bar of "oriental" design... Always silvered bronze, some with some without a hyphen between "LEVANT" and "1941" It's obvious from the above that there may well be more strikings of this medal and its bars. More to follow, I'm running out of space for attachments on this one as the pictures are rather "heavy" ...

Hello Paul, Thanks for the words of welcome. The Order of Leopold I is primarily a long service award. The one Laurence has is of the military division, recognizable by the crossed swords under the crown suspension. The civil division has nothing there, the maritime division sports crossed anchors. More on this subject and the other Belgian orders etc. can be found on my website at www.medals.be

Thanks Christophe ! Seeing you are based in "la belle France", you might wish to have a look at the thread on the Syria-Cilicia Medal (aka the Levant Medal) ... I can do with some more information on that one

Hello Markus, I'm not at all into "unofficial" awards such as these King Albert Veterans' Crosses but the abbreviations on the reverse refer to the name (in French and Flemish) af a Belgian veteran society and can be translated as "Royal Federation of Veterans of King Albert". I suppose it is an award for service to that federation. The small palm device on the King Albert Commemorative Medal doesn't belong there at all : it's usually seen on the King Albert Veterans' Cross in the left of your picture. No clue as to what it represents as, once again, it's a non-governmental award. Cheers, Hendrik

Laurence, Go and take a magnifying glass to have a look at the suspension ring when you have a minute : you might find a "850" or "950" silver mark denoting the cross is silver ... if not, no worries : silvered bronze ones are nice too ! Cheers, Hendrik

Hello Stijn, Nice to be talking English with you for a change Yes, see you tomorrow but the may go wrong as I have guests at home in the evening ! Raincheck seems to be in order there ... C U Hendrik