RobW

And here is the reverse. Regards, Rob

To all, Here is an interesting recent pickup of a group of French mini's, consisting of: * Médaille Militaire, 3rd Republic, 1870-1951 type * Croix du Guerre, 1939-1940 dated reverse * Médaille de la Résistance * Croix du Combattant Volontaire Resistance * Croix du Combattant Volontaire 1914-1918 * Croix du Combattant * Médaille des Blessés Militaire, 2nd Type * Médaille Coloniale What is interesting to me is that the Croix de Guerre 1939-1940 is a Vichy issue on a 1939 ribbon. Is it possible that someone who received a Vichy Croix de Guerre then subsequently joined the Resistance would still wear it at a later date ? I would appreciate any and all thoughts and opinions on this group as it is an area I have little knowledge. Regards, Rob

Hello there, I picked this book up, on the recommendation of another collector. It is probably one of the best books I have, and is remarkable in dealing with the myriad of manufacturer variations and their mintmarks. It is a very handy reference. Not having the Hass book I can't compare but I think it was well worth the €40. Regards, Rob

This example is a plain star and is a bit smaller than the other two examples at 12.8 mm at the widest points of the star. The ribbon is also a bit narrower than the others. Regards, Rob

Here is a close-up of the makers mark. It appears under a loupe to be a square, with a central cross, surrounded by a number of letters but they are not distinguishable. Happy for any thoughts on this. Regards, Rob

This variety has both a star and wreath and is 14.6 mm in diameter at the widest points of the star. It also has, an unidentified square hallmark on the reverse. Regards, Rob

To all, To continue with the wound medals here are some mini's of different designs. The first one is 13.7 mm in diameter and has a very nice dark enamel with a thicker weave ribbon. Regards, Rob

And here is the group of mini's in question. Regards, Rob

And here are the close-ups. While it is difficult to tell from the scan, the designers mark of 'A. Morlon' is present in the correct location, on the lower right rim of the obverse. Such detail on a mini that is only 11.7 mm in diameter, shows a very good level of workmanship. Regards, Rob

To all, Things seem a bit quiet around here at the moment. Here is a nicely detailed later issue French vic mini. It is part of a larger group of 9 which includes an Orient medal, Verdun (Vernier model) and Wound medal. The vic is quite detailed given its small diameter of 11.7 mm and it even has the Paris Mint cornucopia mark and BR on the reverse. The accompanying Combattant Cross and Commemorative War medal also have the Paris mint cornucopia and BR marks. It would be good if other vic collectors could also post their mini's as they are as much an interesting collecting field as their full size counterparts. Close-ups to follow. Regards, Rob

And here is the close-up of the single bar. Regards, Rob

Here is another S‧I‧M. variety. Of note is that the date clasp is similar to that posted by Tim (#8). Close-up of the bar to follow. Regards, Rob

And here is the close-up of the mark. Apologies for the blurriness of the scan. Regards, Rob

To all, Here is a variety produced by F.M. Lorioli-Castelli. The mark looks like a 'C' and an 'F' surrounding an 'M'. Regards, Rob

And here it is. It is 41mm in diameter, measured from the widest point of the arms, and has a number of noticeable die differences compared to the others posted. The differences are easier to spot on the reverse. As indicated before the large ball suspender is reminiscent of French manufacture but this has not been confirmed yet. Regards, Rob

To all, I added this example to another thread before I realised that this specific thread existed. Here is my lone example. It is part of a French group of 7 that I have. It has a really lovely patina on the surface of the enamel and is of a nice multi-part construction with the star a separate piece to the encircling wreath. The solder work is quite good and, despite the wreath being off centre, it shows a good standard of construction despite this being a relatively mass-produced item. The fact that it has a slightly faded ribbon does not bother me and I prefer this to the brand new ribbon look as you can tell the items have been worn. Regards, Rob

Hello Tim, Here is my lone example. It is part of a French group of 7 that I have. It has a really lovely patina on the surface of the enamel and is of a nice multi-part construction with the star a separate piece to the encircling wreath. The solder work is quite good and, despite the wreath being off centre, it shows a good standard of construction despite this being a relatively mass-produced item. The fact that it has a slightly faded ribbon does not bother me and I prefer this to the brand new ribbon look as you can tell the items have been worn. Regards, Rob

Tim, The reference books used to obtain this information were: * Le Medaglie Ufficiali Militari E Civil Del Regno D'Italia, Dimitri Bini, 2008 (Bilingual English-Italian) * Le Decorazioni Del Regno Di Sardegna E Del Regno D'Italia, Vol II, Costantino Scarpa & Paolo Sézanne, 1985 (Italian only) Regards, Rob

Hello Tim, Now that I'm back in Sydney and have access to my reference books here is some more details, as indicated, on the medal bars of the Italian-Turkish War medal 1911-12 and the Libia medal. Italo-Turca Medal. The only officially approved medal bars for this medal were: * 1911, 1911-12, 1912 Libia Medal. There were numerous official bars as well as some unofficial bars. The following long list of official bars were authorised: * 1912, 1912-13, 1913, Fezzan/1913, 1913-14, Fezzan/1913-14, 1914, Fezzan/1914, 1914-15, 1915, Tripolitania/1915, 1915-16, 1916, 1916-17, 1917, 1917-18, 1918, 1918-19, 1919, 1919-20, 1920, 1920-21, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, Tripolitania 1927-1928, 1928, 1929, Tripolitania 1929-1930, 1930, 1931 While this medal was established to recognise service in Libya after the peace treaty of 13 October 1912 (hence the similar dates on bars of both medals), service continued to be recognised within Libya until the onset of World War 2. Subsequent decrees established the granting of bars on the Libia medal until 1931 so bars dated between 1932 and 1940 are considered unofficial. I have pictures of the bars from 1932-1935. There exist single year dated bars from 1932 to 1940. From a rarity scale the single dated bars are much easier to find than multiple dates with those bars indicating a town and date being the hardest to find. As a reference I have pics of the following medals with differing date bars: * Italo-Turca medal - 1911-12, 1912-13, 1913-14, 1914-15, 1915-16, and 1916-17 bars. * Libia medal - 1913, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920 and 1921 bars. * Libia medal - 1914 bar. * Libia medal - 1925, and 1927 bars. * Libia medal - 1940 bar. So while the regulations stated what bars could be worn with what medal it does also appear that veterans wore the bars in the manner they wished. As it is not possible to differentiate the medals by the obverse nor ribbon this could also have been an expedient solution as well. Hope this helps. Regards, Rob

Hello Bison, Thanks very much for the clarification. That is good information. It would be good if someone else could add to the mix and confirm this. Apart from the recent book by Patrick Binet, which shows the relevant makers marks of the Colonial medals, are there any other references available that has some form of listing of the myriad of French manufacturer hallmarks? I have an old copy of 'Court Jewelers of the World' by Jeffrey R. Jacob, dated 1978 which is very useful. While it shows a great many different manufacturer marks it is also incomplete in many areas. It would be advantageous if such an updated book were produced. Regards, Rob

Hello Bison, Welcome back. Thanks for the input regarding the last War Commemorative medal mark. I have another example with this mark but never noticed that it was merely inverted. I have also recently been made aware that the examples in posts #27-28 and #32-34 of the thread have another variety of the mark of Léon Chalin. Is this manufacturer Paris based like most of the others? Regards, Rob

To Tim, I am still searching for my Arthus Bertrand example. It will eventually turn up. Regards, Rob

And the mark itself. It is a similar external shape to that shown on post #32-34 but there is definitely different internal markings. While it is difficult to tell I believe the central mark resembles an upside down arrow. I am hopeful that someone more knowledgeable can identify this maker. Any thoughts?? Regards, Rob

And here is the close-up of the reverse. Note the similar diamond shaped mark. Regards, Rob

To all, Here is another French War Commemorative medal with yet a different makers mark on the reverse. It is part of a group of 6 that I have. I only noticed the different mark when I was looking for my Arthus Bertrand marked specimen. Close-ups of the reverse and mark to follow. Regards, Rob