Comical ribbon bar on eBay...

[landsknechte]

Sometimes a little comic relief is a good thing...

[Guest Rick Research]

The thing and the thing is that morons actually pay REAL MONEY for this garbage.

This, IMHO, is decisive evidence that Neanderthals did not, in fact, die out.

I recommend immediate global DNA testing.

Another generation is too many.

[Ralph A]

Looks like the front of a strip mall.

[Bob Hunter]

My comedy bar looks like this...

[Guest Rick Research]

Ah, a Mister Ohio Parts Fraud "Richthofen."

If as I think from the scan, some of those same same same wreaths and swords have been PAINTED, then this is a LATE 1990s example. He was already running out of original ribbon stock, so some of those will glow electric blue under blacklight on the white parts.

I once attended a show where six dealers all swore these were original. That Red Baron sure left a LOT of souvenirs!!! Same show had a similar number of equally not-quite-right "Rommels" and "Himmlers." The most famous, of course, is the fake "Rommel" on the cover of Rev. Hayden's ribbon bar book.

I knew I should have bought some of MOPF's cheaper small bars when he was still using original green enamelled wreaths. TRY finding a loose one, nowadays.

[Bob Hunter]

I'll ask you to put a name to MOPF during our next on-line chat.

[Piper]

Hello, first let me say how pleased I am to have to found this very informative and useful site.

I'm not sure if this topic (Rommel ribbon bar on the cover of the Hayden book) is still of any interest as the last post on it here is 2005, but in any event since I just found it I will reply.

I owned that ribbon bar for over a decade and it was in my display case for a long time before I even bothered to take a closer look at the awards and devices it had. It came out of Michigan directly from a WW2 vet in the mid 1980s and he had it in a box with several other medals and daggers he said he brought home with him or had sent home (I forget). In the box were several ribbon bars and this was the longest of them (hence my reason for wanting it). The other medals were Eagle orders (mostly 4th or 5th class with and without swords as I recall) and also a Knights Cross of the war Merit I remember.

The fellow who acquired it from the vet I have known for more than 25 years. He has long experience finding and collecting mililtaria, and I have always known him to be completely honest in every way. Back then he would give me a call every so often and tell me what he found, and if I had interest in any of it he would send to me for my consideration. On this occasion he mentioned that there were several ribbon bars in the box and I said if any were long ones go ahead and send it to me. I also took about 3 of the Eagle Orders and the War Merit cross as well (I didnt keep them, as other collector friends of mine in my area wanted them and my own budget was limited, but looking back I regret not having purchased the items myself since I had first choice at all of it). Now when I see the prices of things I certainly do wish I had kept so much of what I had gotten in the earlier years of my collecting. What I gave him for the ribbon bar was about $30 if memory serves me (almost 25 years ago).

I never did pay much attention to it until one day (about 1998 or 99 I think) when I was looking at a book I have where it clearly showed Rommel's in a picture. So I took mine out and compared. Excitedly I called a friend who has extensive medal collecting experience and asked him to have a look. He felt it was correct and had no issues with it's construction. Granted he is more of an Imperial collector, but still he has seen much in his years of buying, selling, and collecting. And I have come to rely on his knowledge of militaria to help and guide me over the past two decades. Others had also looked it over at my request and none gave a thumbs down on it.

I am not here disputing what anyone on this site may have commented as it is not my intent to dispute, only to provide some background of the bar and my small part in it's story. I recognise and appreciate the expertise of Rick (having been reading and benefiting from his and others wealth of knowledge here for 3 days since I registered ). I certainly dont have the expertise to debate such minds, but I just thought it might be of interest to hear about my own involvement in the story.

To continue, after my intial discovery I returned the ribbon bar to my case and there it once again stayed until a few years later when I learned of someone who might want to have it (meaning of course a ribbon bar that matched Rommel's). I contacted this person and provided the info on where it came from as well as those who had examined it since. After satisfying himself of who I was and what it was we agreed to make a deal on it. This would have been about 2001 perhaps. The story was at an end for me until last week when I was looking at some militaria sites and saw the book by Mark Hayden. I was indeed very curious as to whether there was another such ribbon bar or if it was in fact mine on the cover. I contacted the person I sold mine to and was told yes it is indeed that one. I dont know Rev Hayden nor I have ever read the book.

Well I guess that's about it. As I have said, I cant possibly dispute anything that has been said about it in this forum as I do not have the expertise to do so. But having said that, what makes me wonder is 1) I know for certain that the bar was purchased directly from a vet in the mid 80s 2) it was in a box among other medals, awards and TR militaria all of which long ago were subsequently acquired by other experienced collectors and none to my knowledge have proven to not be authentic (well no one came pounding on my door shouting expletives at me about something being a fake since then lol).

I'm not a dealer nor an expert, just another collector from the late 1970s. I dont want to own non authentic militaria items and never have. I would still like to believe that the ribbon bar in question is real, and maybe for a while in my life I actually did own something connected to such a significant person in history. However, I have read Rick's detailed commentary on it on another forum and I cannot simply dismiss that. I wish I had taken pics of it when I had it so the backside could be seen. I do recall that the backing material appeared to me to be of wool? and it was about the color of some German general's uniforms I have seen (grey-green but more green than grey to my eyes). And the thread for the stitches was a lighter green than the backing. I havent seen it for a long time so I cannot remember anything more though.

I would be most interested to read anything more on this subject.

Thanks to all members for their valuable contributions to this wonderful site and especially to the creators of it. I'm so glad I found it and I look forward to many happy hours spent here reading and learning from all of you. :)

Edited April 27, 2009 by Piper