Bulgaria Medal Bar with Bulgarian Award

[hunyadi]

Got this off of Ebay last week and I liked the war wreath on the Bulgarian Order - however when I got it today - the ribbons look old, the EK is what I would expect the War Cross is also what I would expect but the Bulgarian looks a bit too.... "fresh". There are no flaws to the enamel and it all looks in such good shape that perhaps it was made yesterday. I am sure that with any item there are reproductions - so what are your opinions???

[hunyadi]

Front of the Bulgarian Order - also what is the name of this one???

[hunyadi]

reverse

[Valter]

Dammm, I was looking that auctiion but missed it finally ... At least it went into good hands.

This is Military merit order 5th class, war wariant (laurel wreath and white central ring enammel; peacetime order has green enammeled ring and no laurel wreath), Ferdinand I. (WW1) issue.

About the originality I'm not an expert, but personally I like this piece. As you can see, it's a tremendous amount of craftsmanship and very complicated construction - that makes it very hard to fake, and also expensive to fake in this quality. Godet copies are nowhere near to the quality of original. These pieces, although one of the most beautiful orders in the world, do not command really high prices (you got this whole bar for the price of single "humble" iron cross 1st class, and not even a silver one ), what is another reason against fake.

You can check some pieces in my labum for comparation, but the pictures are really bad.... I'll try to make better ones of my (peacetime) cross.

http://s1027.photobucket.com/albums/y339/FreyaSiegfried/Bolgarija%202010/Vojaski%20muzeji%20-%20Military%20museums/

What do experienced Bulgarian guys think?

[hunyadi]

Thanks Valter for your opinion. If it is a reproduction - it’s made with stunning craftsmanship, certainly – and it would be nearly impossible to tell the difference from an original. My other concern is that there is no enamel damage that I would expect from bumping against that Hindenburg Cross for some time. I suspect that it may have been a "pieced together bar" but as you mentioned the price was a near steal as I paid less for the whole bar than I did for another Military Merit Order 5th class in my collection (green central medallion)

[Ulsterman]

It looks real to me! Congrats!!!

[Ferdinand]

I think it's original.

Very nice group!

Edited October 20, 2010 by Ferdinand

[Valter]

Thanks Valter for your opinion. If it is a reproduction - it's made with stunning craftsmanship, certainly – and it would be nearly impossible to tell the difference from an original. My other concern is that there is no enamel damage that I would expect from bumping against that Hindenburg Cross for some time. I suspect that it may have been a "pieced together bar" but as you mentioned the price was a near steal as I paid less for the whole bar than I did for another Military Merit Order 5th class in my collection (green central medallion)

Yes, it is possible the bar is put together - and that's almost impossible to prove or reject, but it's also possible the bar was rarely worn or not at all. It looks just faded (ribbons), but I can't see any obvious marks of wear (fraying, worn down rings...) so it might be the veteran just obtained the bar, put it in a drawer (or cabinet) and never put it on. If it was worn maybe a couple of times for a couple of hours, enammel might not get chipped. It is quality enammel work and these decorations were made to be worn (as you can see on pictures of Bulgarian officers) so it probably won't chip instantly. I see many bravery crosses from WW2 period with chips and cracks, but few earlier pieces, like this one. So it's maybe of better quality.

Regards, valter

[hunyadi]

Certainly these orders were worn and they do seem to withstain damage better than other enamel pieces I have seen. So I agree it could be put together, but I am happy to have a consensious that the order is original

[new world]

I have doubts Bulgarian Military Merit belongs to this medal bar - it looks like it was made in later period (probably Boris III).

Also, Military Merit is officer-level award - I am not sure this bar is to an officer. More logical award on this bar would be Soldier's Bravery Cross or Medal for Merit.