Hello- It was an italian award, they gave him many medals, Pictures I have of him in uniform when He first went to africa do not have the star ribbon below his german ribbon bar, and other pictures I have of him in uniform just before normandy show him not wearing the Star Ribbon. I suspect that he wore the star ribbon just to get more cooperation and supplies from the italians, but as soon as they turned on germany in 1943 he took the italian award off his uniform.- regards