Ethiopian Militaria

[stephenmiller]

I am interested in seeing photos and illustrations of Ethiopian army and air force badges and uniforms too and also from the Dergue-communist period.

What about the old Ethiopian navy too?

[shako_uk]

Hope the attached scans will be of interest, Stephen. I'm sorry I do not knnow much about these items, but have tried to record what I know. The first scan shows Ethiopian Army badges from the 1950s. These are all cast brass and were the official issues. Some designs are obviously based on British b adges, for instance, the Medical Corps and the Electrical/Mechanical Engineers. The badge at the top tight is that of the Military School. The two on the bottom line, right, are both Infantry badges, don't know what the difference is. Presumably the inscriptions would help, had I a translator!

The second scan shows some badges which were permitted, but had to be privately purchased. These are considerably smaller than the official issues and were made from brass pressings. The fasteners are thin, needle-like "sliders". Again, Medical, Artillery, Infantry and Transport are easily recognisable. The two on the left, bottom line, are exceptions, both being die-struck badges with screw fastenings. The one at the extreme left was made in Sweden and, despite its size, was the helmet badge of the Imperial Guard. The badge adjacent came to me at a later date and, due to the similarity, but lacking the Imperial Crown, I guess it may be the badge of the Presidential guard. I would stress that this is only surmise.

The third scan shows more badges of the Imperial era, these rather better-made that the earlier ones, though the two at the bottom, right are both cast white-metal, The centre one being the badge of the Haile Selassie Military Academy.

I don't think I have space for more scans so will start again.

[shako_uk]

Continuation ....

Two of the badges in the next scan are from the Imperial period and two from a later date. The one at top, left is really well-produced and is marked on the reverse "made in Ethiopia B.A.Sevadjian" Again, translations are necessary to identify these.

More "modern" badges in this scan. I think the top two are from the Mengistu era, and both well-produsced, brass pressings. both the same design. The two on the bottom line are also similar, though the one to the left is die-struck, with screw-fastenings E-W. Officers and o/ranks? . . . . I don't know.

Finally, I have an Imperial Air Force badge, Swedish-made and an Imperial Navy badge. I guess this Naval badge is that of a Petty Officer as opposed to a Commissioned Officer, but I have no further information. The two badges on the bottom line are, probably Police badges. Certainly, the inscription on the badge at the left reads: "Ethiopian Government Police"

Continued below . . . .

[shako_uk]

Conclusion:

So, that's it, Stephen. I hope this will be of interest and, if you have anyinformation to offer, I'd be pleased to hear it.

Brian

[Ed_Haynes]

A nice collection and avery nice presentation, Brian. While these may raise more questions than they answer, every little bit of evidence we can get in untangling "things Ethiopian" may, someday, somehow, help. Thanks again.

Edited March 31, 2007 by Ed_Haynes

[Ulsterman]

wow! Nice collection. there is actually an Ethiopian Philastics society. There is quite a bit known about imperial Ethiopia and the recent regime has published their medal laws and some regulations on-line. A friend of mine down in D.C. is working on obtining photos from the military attache' at the embassy .

The Derg regime is the mystery ( a nasty, brutal government), but there may well be total information available in the german archives, as the DDR was the Derg's strongest ally and produced some of its medals.

This is the wound medal:

[stephenmiller]

Great stuff there. Let's hope to see more pics courtest of the Ethiopian military attrache in DC as there is not much known about the Ethiopian badges and their history over here.

[iffig]

A wonderful set of pics on a almost unknown subject matter.

Congratulations.

[Ulsterman]

The DDR was the Derg's strongest Communist ally. I am convinced that their medals were made not in the Ethiopian mint (although imperial Ethiopian medals are of high quality) but in the DDR. Certainly the artwork and the metallic content, as well as the die struck nature of their medals, hints at foreign, DDR manufacture. Given that there are cites out there as to how many tractors and KGs of fertilizer were shipped from the DDR to Ethiopia, I suspect that somewhere in germany right now there are records and complete documentation of Derg wards made and criteria. Derg awards were given to DDR soldiers in Ethiopia up until 1990.

[Ulsterman]

By the way, the badges in the bottom row of picture #4 are modern era. the star was adopted as a new symbol of the post Derg/Mengistu regime @ 1993-4 and placed upon the Ethiopian flag @ 1991.

[jarodparker]

Continuation ....

Two of the badges in the next scan are from the Imperial period and two from a later date. The one at top, left is really well-produced and is marked on the reverse "made in Ethiopia B.A.Sevadjian" Again, translations are necessary to identify these.

More "modern" badges in this scan. I think the top two are from the Mengistu era, and both well-produsced, brass pressings. both the same design. The two on the bottom line are also similar, though the one to the left is die-struck, with screw-fastenings E-W. Officers and o/ranks? . . . . I don't know.

Finally, I have an Imperial Air Force badge, Swedish-made and an Imperial Navy badge. I guess this Naval badge is that of a Petty Officer as opposed to a Commissioned Officer, but I have no further information. The two badges on the bottom line are, probably Police badges. Certainly, the inscription on the badge at the left reads: "Ethiopian Government Police"

Continued below . . . .

Hello all,

It seems that the golden badge (top-left) seems to be some type of Wildlife Administration badge, but I'd have to see a clearer scan or photo of it. The silver badge (top-right) is an imperial era police badge. Bottom left is for the 2nd infantry division. Bottom-right is a Derg badge but I'm not sure for which service.

The next scan... top two are Derg navy badges. Bottom two are from the current government.

The last scan... the air force and navy badges. Then the bottom two are for the police. I hope this helps. Let me know if you need anything else translated; I'll try to visit often as you guys have a wealth of info here.

Cheers!

[dan.rceme]

Hello, Can you identify the top left badge in the 3rd scan up above with the cog wheel and calipers? I am looking for the EME badge with the lion, any tips? Thank you. Dan

[Ulsterman]

It is the Imperial Signal Corps.

[dan.rceme]

 

 

 

 

On the above scan, the bottom left badge appears to be from the Electrical and Mechanical Engineers as the three shields and the calipers resemble the British, Early India, and East Africa badges. I am presently looking for one as EME badges are my main collection interests from around the world. If you have any direction where to obtain one, I would greatly appreciate it. Nice badges throughout. Well done!

On the above scan, the badge with the cog wheel and the calipers appear to be some sort of engineering. Can you identify it? Thank you.