Jump to content
News Ticker
  • I am now accepting the following payment methods: Card Payments, Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal
  • Latest News

    Spanish Civil War Campaign Medal (1936-39)


    Scott

    Recommended Posts

    I got involved in a thread on this medal over on WAF this week attempting to photo-catalog the different variants of the medal. It was suggested that I present the info here as well.

    These medals are relatively common and can be found in multiples on nearly every dealer site, auction, and show table; most often they're in mint condition with the original box and tissue. The medal was manufactured by Indrustrias Egana in Spain from 1938 through (by some estimates) the late 1970s. At first glance, they all look the same; however there are subtle differences, mostly centering on the maker marks (or lack of them). My aim was to attemt to figure out which medals might be linked to pre-May 1945 manufacture. To do that I would try to link specific medal variants found on medal bars to manufacture prior to May 1945. Overall, my quest turned out to be an exercise in futility since there are probably more than a dozen variants, and nearly every variant can be found on a given medal bar.

    Anyway, for what it's worth, I'll present my 'findings' here as I did on WAF, and perhaps some shred of useful information can be gleaned from it. Some of the pictures are a little dark, so you may need to turn up the brightness on your monitor a bit to see the details discussed. If I've used a picture of your medal and you object to it, please let me know, and I will remove it and find a substitute picture.

    First up are two medals with identical 'Egana' markings in the same spot on the front (look for the red circles/white dots), but they are from two different dies. The one on the left has the distinctive shape at the top on both sides (green circles/white dots) while the one on the right does not. There are other minor die strike differences as well if you study them closely. Neither is maker-marked on the reverse.

    Edited by Scott
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    Next are three more medals that are maker-marked on the front only. The left and center medals are very similar, but the 'Egana' marks are in slightly different locations (left, directly under the tail; center, slightly right of the tail), and the ammount of 'non-wreath area' at the top on each is different. There are other minor detail differences as well. The medal on the right has the 'Egana' mark laid-out almost horizontally under the tail.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    Here are a couple of unmarked examples. The one on the left has the distinctive shape at the top while the one on the right does not.

    Edited by Scott
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    Here's where things get a bit complicated... The next photos represent a series of up to eight variants with maker-marks on both sides. On the front, "A.M" can be found either above the upper lion paw or between the toes of the lower paw. On the reverse, the 'Indrustrias Egana' mark is either placed near-virtically along the shield, or along the lower edge near the helmet. In addition, some or all of these variants may - or may not - have another "A.M." mark on the reverse under the the eagle's wing tip.

    This is where my 'research' ends. It would be great if members would check their medals, and post pictures of any not presented here, front and back. That way we can continue to marvel at the seeming over-abundance of dies Egana used to produce this medal :speechless:

    Thanks for looking.

    Scott

    Edited by Scott
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    Hi Scott,

    Great job you?re doing here too. I?m glad the pictures are useful. The "white dots"; it took me a while to do it. :speechless:

    I hope one day will find out why there are so many different variants.

    Regards,

    Adolph.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    • 6 months later...

    Type / Obverse / Reverse

    1 / Ballon+EGA?A vertical / Ballon no marks

    2 / EGA?A vertical / No marks

    3 / AM under the neck del dragoon / INDUSTRIAS EGA?A below the helmet

    4a / AM under the claw del dragoon / INDUSTRIAS EGA?A around the shield

    4b / AM under the claw del dragoon / INDUSTRIAS EGA?A around the shield + AM under the end of eagle wing

    4c / AM under the claw del dragoon / INDUSTRIAS EGA?A around the shield + AM under the helmet

    4d / AM under the claw del dragoon / INDUSTRIAS EGA?A under the helmet. AM

    around the shield

    4e / AM under the claw del dragoon / No marks

    5 / No marks / INDUSTRIAS EGA?A

    6 / EGA?A horizontal together to the tail del dragoon / No marks

    7 / Lezos or Lizos horizontal together to the tail del dragoon / No marks

    8 / No marks / No marks

    Any correction, update and also good images of the medaillons are very welcome, specially for types 3, 4a, 4b, 5 and 8

    More informations about the german firms are also welcome (Steinhauer & Luck, Schickle y Paul Meybauer) I believe

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    Yes - in addition to the Spanish series of medals showing up in the period catalogs of S&L, Schickle, Deumer, etc., it looks like they may have been made for Spain in Italy as well. No wonder there are so many variants!

    Scott

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    • 1 year later...

    Received this one as a present from my kids this past Christmas; we took a family trip to Barcelona in Feb 2008 and that is where they bought it - at a flea market.

    After reading this thread, I've identified it as Antonio's Type 4b / obverse = AM under the dragon claw / reverse = INDUSTRIAS EGA?A around the shield + AM under the end of eagle wing. I'll post images, but my photography isn't the best.

    Always learning, this thread also helped me identify this as a non-combatant's ribbon with green stripes (thanks to Antonio's website); now I have to find the black stripe combatant version.

    Edited by IrishGunner
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    I am also thinking that the initials "AM" are actually initials of the medal's designer rather than a makersmark - which really would be Egana.

    Not sure what that means to the whole varient story - just thinking out loud. :rolleyes:

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    ... What types do we see/have on medal bars out there?

    Just about every variant can be found on period medal bars, which is why I stopped looking - in detail anyway. Still a good looking award (IMO) with great symbolism. I just realized how the four golden swords within the golden wreath favors the Spanish Cruz Laureada de San Fernando, one of the highest awards for bravery (probably just a curious coincidence).

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    Create an account or sign in to comment

    You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

    Create an account

    Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

    Register a new account

    Sign in

    Already have an account? Sign in here.

    Sign In Now
    ×
    ×
    • Create New...

    Important Information

    We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.