RobW

Hello Sergio, What needs to be taken into account is that Czechoslovak Legion members sewed their medals directly to the tunic, or attached them to boule suspenders, and there are numerous pictures available to show this. No doubt over the passage of time some of these ribbons would have become worn and would have needed to be replaced. There are numerous pics on this thread that showed the thicker weave and unblended type of ribbon common to Czechoslovak vics that was used in the first period (1920-1945). After 1945 and the Karnet & Kysely produced models appeared the newer blend or weave of ribbon is seen on those medals. Following the communist takeover in February 1948 the Karnet & Kysely firm was nationalised, so remaining records from that firm are not available. While you can never be 100% sure I would suggest that if a particular veteran wanted to replace their medal ribbon they would source whatever stocks were available locally, either from manufacturers or tailors. If the Karnet & Kysely produced ribbon was available it would have been an option. Regards, Rob

Hello Lambert, My absences this year will be frequent due to work commitments. I agree that the unofficial type 1 was probably made in France. This particular variety also has a similar high quality which is at least suggestive that it was produced in France. Even compared to the unofficial type 1 there are many similarities between the two; despite some small variations on the reverse. Regards, Rob

Hello Gunner 1, Has this item arrived yet?? Regards, Rob

Hello rocketscientist, There are quite a few different variations of these date bars. Some have been posted on this thread already but other variations continue to appear in the market. Given the large number of manufacturers of the medal it stands to reason that there would be a similar number of bar manufacturers. These bars were also produced, both officially and unofficially, for service in Albania. These are now becoming quite difficult to obtain. Regards, Rob

Hello Oliver, I would agree that this piece is an unofficial strike. It is very close to the design of the official production, with some minor reverse die variations and the lack of the 'Kristesko' mark. Some collectors have suggested that this piece was made in France due to the high level of detail and production values; but this has yet to be conclusively established. Regards, Rob

Hello David, I have seen silvered-bronze examples of the French vic before. As has been suggested elsewhere on this forum whether or not a medal was silvered, or even gilt finished may have defended on the funds of the person wanting to wear the medal. In addition there is also the French reissue type vic which has both a reddish-bronze finish as well as a shiny-gilt finish. Regards, Rob

Hello David, As Dave posted at #39 of this thread this particular strike has been previously identified as a reproduction. While the exact manufacturer has not yet been established there are a number of die differences which should aid the vic collector in not being duped into thinking this is an official strike. Regards, Rob

Hello Sergio, I would clarify the comments from Lambert. The ribbon attached to your Czechoslovak vic is not necessarily a 'modern replacement'. It was produced at the same time as the Reissue type 1 and Reissue type 2 by the firm of Karnet & Kysely. This occurred between 1945-1948 so it is both correct to type and period and it is not uncommon to see the official Czechoslovak vics on this type of ribbon. If you can find it I would attempt to replace any modern era nylon ribbon with correct to era french ribbon as that was also consistently used with vics from a number of countries and would be more correct... Regards, Rob

Sergio, As far as I have been able to identify the french medal manufacturers also produced the ribbons for the medals. I would suggest that maybe it is a french produced ribbon but don't have any further information than that. French ribbon that I have seen has different hues and colours than the original ribbons. My example did not have any ribbon attached to it. Regards, Rob

Hello Sergio, Happy to help where I can. Regards, Rob

And here is the scan of the accompanying description, from page 97. Regards, Rob

Sergio, Here is a scan of the illustration from the 1934 Delande catalogue; page 95. Regards, Rob

Here is the picture of my french produced example. Regards, Rob

Hello Sergio, The medal that you have described, and posted pictures of, is not a fake but a french reproduction contemporary to the period. It was produced in the early 1930's timeframe by the french medal production house of M.Delande in Paris. They were a well known french medal manufacturer who were a prolific producer of medals from not just France but a wide variety of european countries. During the same timeframe they produced medals and decorations from countries that were involved in the Great War of 1914-1918. These decorations and medals were illustrated in a fantastic 1934 catalogue produced by the Delande firm showing all the varieties. It was commonplace for there to be die differences in these french made reproductions compared to the originals. The details that you showed in your pictures are consistent with a Delande manufactured piece and the file marks on the rim are also common in these pieces. I will post a picture of my Delande manufactured reproduction, which was obtained during the final close-down sale of stock from that manufacturer, and you will see the details are the same. I will also post the illustration and entry from the 1934 Delande catalogue for your reference. All in all you have a nice 1930's french produced reproduction of a nicely designed italian war commemorative medal. Regards, Rob

Hello IrishGunner, The 'wire loop' is a designed for fitting on the lapel of a jacket. It is a commonly seen accoutrement especially with french and belgian items. Regards, Rob

To one and all, Here is another example of a French War Commemorative medal. In this case it appears that the medal was struck without makers marks on the reverse. The BR mark and cornucopia of the Paris mint are actually stamped into the reverse planchet instead of being part of the design as usually seen. It seems odd that the BR mark and cornucopia are stamped into the planchet. Has any other French collector seen such a variety? Regards, Rob

Hello David, A nice pair of a Leisek and a Riemer produced Belgian model vic. Of note is the Leisek is the unofficial type 1a variety with the 'LA' mark only on the reverse. The unofficial type 1 Leisek variety is a bit more difficult to obtain and it has the 'LA' mark on both the obverse and reverse. Once you get started down this road there just seems to be so many varieties to collect. Regards, Rob

Hello David, While you have indeed picked up a nice Greek official vic it does appear to be missing the top part of the decorative suspension. The top half of this suspender is illustrated, in close-up pics, in posts #48 and #49 of this thread. It looks like yours has been replaced with a simple brass ring. Regards, Rob

Hello David, A nice example. It is a medal that appears frequently in French groups due to service in the Salonika theatre of war. There is a specific thread on the different varieties of the Serbian commemorative medal for the Great War on another section of GMIC. It is located at: http://gmic.co.uk/index.php/topic/23820-serbia-different-types-of-commemorative-wwi/ This thread also has some different award documents as well. Regards, Rob

Hello David, As Bill has alluded to; in order to repair this piece you would have to either denude another medal of a ball suspender or have one fashioned by a jeweler. An experienced jeweler should be able to solder such a sourced replacement onto the planchet. Either way it is not going to be an easy task. I would keep the piece as a placeholder and wait until you are in a position to obtain another piece complete with ball suspender and suspension ring. Regards, Rob

Hello David, Yes; you have an official version. It has the barrel suspender and correct unblended ribbon. I have posted some comparison pics of the official version next to the French made reproduction (which has a ball suspender) at #3 and #4 of this thread. They will clearly show the differences. Regards, Rob

Hello David, There are a number of different finishes; shiny or dull bronze, that Romanian vics are seen in. In this case you have a good example of a 'reverse N' variety (unofficial type 2 in both Laslo volumes) that happens to have a shiny finish. It is illustrated as plates 72-73 in the first edition. Regards, Rob

Hello David, As Bill has indicated, there is nothing wrong with the piece. A nice official type 2 with nice French ribbon in good condition. Regards, Rob

Hello David, In the first edition of Mr Laslo's work he lists an official type and another as the 'unofficial type 4', on page 23. These are then illustrated in that volume as plates 18-19 and 21-22 respectively at the back of the book. The 'unofficial type 4' is re-listed as the 'official type 1' and the 'official type' is re-listed as the 'official type 2', in the second edition. The main differences are the lack of a designers name (O. Spaniel) and the presence of maker marks (LA) on the type 1 compared to the presence of a designers name and no makers marks on the type 2. Bill has posted some colour pictures of the type 1, including close-ups of the maker marks in #81 of this thread. That should provide the detail you are looking for. Regards, Rob

Hello David, There have been a number of similar discussion points raised about newer varieties than that listed in the Laslo volumes. Noting that Alex Laslo's 2nd edition was published in 1992 it stands to reason that there are going to be additional varieties, not identified at the time of publication, surfacing. Given the passage of 21 years since that book was released there are a number of newer varieties and sub-varieties that have been discussed, and in some cases, illustrated in the various threads on this forum topic. I would suggest that you review each country sub-thread and you may find the answers you are looking for. As has already been posted the unofficial Belgian types are becoming much harder to find, in good condition whereas the unofficial Italian models are well-nigh impossible to find. The divergence between scarcity and value has often been discussed amongst all collectors. To para-phrase an earlier post on the 'WW1 Victory Medals General Discussion' sub-thread, which has relevance regarding what collectors will pay: "There is two areas here that need to be understood; market values and collector values. I think a close look at sales on the various online auction houses, ebay sites, and other online medal dealers should give you a general guide as to the prices you could expect for each of the varieties. There is then what a specific collector will pay for the same item; and this may not always be consistent with the market value." Regards, Rob