Italy - Commemorative Medal for the War of 1915-1918

[RobW]

To all,

Here is a nice example of an Italian War Commemorative Medal with all 4 date bars. It is produced in a shiny bronze finish and has the makers mark of 'M. Nelli Inc' of Florence, underneath the bottom of the bust of King Vittorio Emanuele III.

Note the safety pin through the top of the ribbon. This was used to secure the medal to the Ministry of War (Army) award certificate.

Close-ups of the date bars to follow.

Regards, Rob

Edited April 3, 2010 by RobW

[RobW]

Here are the date bars in close-up.

There are numerous different styles to the date bars with slightly different backstraps.

Regards, Rob

Edited April 3, 2010 by RobW

[Brian Wolfe]

Hi Rob,

Very nice medal, I'm not familiar with Italian medals but getting one with all four bars must be difficult. The straps on the bars are also interesting and strike me as a really good idea especially if the bars were to be added to a potential group one after another as they were awarded.

Thanks for posting this interesting specimen.

Regards

Brian

[RobW]

Hi Rob,

Very nice medal, I'm not familiar with Italian medals but getting one with all four bars must be difficult. The straps on the bars are also interesting and strike me as a really good idea especially if the bars were to be added to a potential group one after another as they were awarded.

Thanks for posting this interesting specimen.

Regards

Brian

Hello Brian,

Yes it is a nice specimen, and you are correct that it seems to be more difficult to find them with all 4 date bars.

I have a few different varieties which I shall post when I find them amongst the clutter of my desk. My records indicate that this medal was produced by up to 6 official manufacturers with another 4 unofficial strikes being observed, included one French production.

Regards,

Rob

Edited April 3, 2010 by RobW

[RobW]

To all,

This example was part of a larger group of 4. It is produced in a darker bronze finish, and has the makers name 'Sacchini-Milano' underneath the bust of the King and has a slightly more refined strike.

Note the different style of dates on the bars as well as the fixed backstrap.

Close-ups of the date bars to follow.

Regards,

Rob

[RobW]

And the date bars in close-up. Note that the order of wear is in reverse to the other example previously posted.

Rob

[Tim B]

Here's my 3-place medal bar that has all four date bars to the Commemorative Medal.

Tim

[Tim B]

Close up of the bars.

[Tim B]

Another variation to the bars that I have seen (don't own it).

Tim

[RobW]

To all,

To add a little bit of a change here is another Commemorative Medal but this is in miniature.

For a mini only 11mm in diameter it is still a finely detailed piece.

Regards,

Rob

[RobW]

To all,

Here is another example of an Italian War Commemorative Medal. It is produced in a much darker bronze finish and has the makers mark of 'S‧I‧M' of Rome, underneath the bottom of the bust of King Vittorio Emanuele III. 'S‧I‧M' stood for 'Società Italiana Medaglia' and was another medal manufacturer from Rome. There is yet another variety that is marked 'S‧I‧M ROMA'.

Close up of the mark to follow.

Regards,

Rob

Edited August 22, 2010 by RobW

[RobW]

And here is the close up of the S‧I‧M variety.

Regards,

Rob

Edited August 22, 2010 by RobW

[Michael Johnson]

Does anyone know a source for ribbon? I have a bare example (no bars, either), and would like to complete it. I haven't checked to see who the manufacturer is.

[RobW]

To all,

Here is a close-up of the Sacchini-Milano variety posted in #5 above.

The makers mark of the 'M.Nelli Inc' variety is proving to be difficult to scan. Needless to say it is in the same position as the 'Sacchini-Milano' mark. There is a variety produced by S.Johnson of Milan. In this case the makers mark is immediately below the wreath at centre bottom of the obverse, simply marked 'S J'. When I can find my example I shall post a pic.

Regards,

Rob

Edited August 22, 2010 by RobW

[Tim B]

Hi Mike,

I would start with eBay and search Italian medals, I think I seen a couple sellers offering them. If not, here's on e site that comes to mind: http://www.worldmedals.co.uk/Rib/forribb.htm

Tim

[RobW]

To all,

This medal has been produced by at least 7 official manufacturers and at 2, possibly more, unofficial manufacturers.

The official manufacturers are listed as:

* CFML (Lorioli-Castelli, Milano)

* M. Nelli. Inc (Mario Nelli & C, Firenze)

* Sachhini (Milano)

* S‧I‧M (Società Italiana Medaglia, Rome)

* S‧I‧M ROMA (Società Italiana Medaglia, Rome)

* S J (Stefano Johnson, Milano)

* No marking (Unknown)

Unofficial manufactures are identified as:

* M. Delande and 1 other.

All of these varieties have both minor and major differences in the strikes and the metals used in production. In addition to the medals with the standard tri-colour ribbon there are also varieties with different ribbons that were awarded to the Merchant Navy, and unofficially to the State Railways. The State Railways were issued a ribbon but were never officially awarded the medal; even if the recipients used the medal anyway.

Such a variety of medals make for a very interesting collecting field.

Hope this is of use.

Regards,

Rob

[Michael Johnson]

My eyes aren't as good as they used to be, but mine looks like the Sachhini version pictured above.

My interest comes from the presence of Italian units at Soupir in 1917 during the Chemin des Dames offensive. There is an Italian war cemetery there.

[RobW]

To all,

Here is another variety, this time by the maker of Stefano Johnson of Milan. This is indicated by the small 'S J' at the obverse centre base beneath the leaves.

Also attached to this medal are two Albanian bars; one official and the other unofficial. The bars 'Albania 1919' and 'Albania 1920' are official. In addition there exists three unofficial bars marked 'Albania 1916', 'Albania 1917' and 'Albania 1918'.

While the official Albania bars are rarely seen strangely enough the 3 unofficial bars are even more rarely seen. Note how these clasps have a straight backstrap without the locking hasp seen in earlier posted examples.

Close ups to follow.

Regards,

Rob

Edited August 25, 2010 by RobW

[RobW]

And the close-up of the makers mark. Despite the blurriness of the scan the 'S J' mark should still be apparent.

Regards,

Rob

[RobW]

And the close-up of the two bars. It is quite easy to see the minor design differences between the official and the unofficial clasps.

Regards,

Rob

Edited August 24, 2010 by RobW

[RobW]

To all,

Here is a variety produced by F.M. Lorioli-Castelli. The mark looks like a 'C' and an 'F' surrounding an 'M'.

Regards,

Rob

Edited September 9, 2010 by RobW

[RobW]

And here is the close-up of the mark. Apologies for the blurriness of the scan.

Regards,

Rob

Edited September 9, 2010 by RobW

[RobW]

Here is another S‧I‧M. variety. Of note is that the date clasp is similar to that posted by Tim (#8).

Close-up of the bar to follow.

Regards,

Rob

Edited September 8, 2010 by RobW

[RobW]

And here is the close-up of the single bar.

Regards,

Rob

[IrishGunner]

Here is my piece... A "F.M. Lorioli-Castelli" version... Unfortunately, no bars...