Chris Boonzaier Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 I am a big fan of how bars would have looked in November 1918, Some people dont mind the Hindy cross from the 3rd Reich Period, Some prefer association medals added, Some Like the Hungarian etc etuff on them... All a question of taste... Is there a specific medal where you think "Ugh!" I wish that was not on... ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 Probably the Treuedienst-Ehrenzeichen. When the average person sees the bar, his eyes seem to immediately focus on that big swastika and he makes the snap judgment "Nazi". Doesn't matter if the recipient was a schoolteacher or clerk at the patent office. Then you have to spend more time explaining the "Nazi" medal and forget about whatever interesting story the other medals might tell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naxos Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 Good point Dave. I have to say the Hindenburgkreuz because it caused probably over 80% of bars to be rearranged in 1934. I pay premium for bars without it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Boonzaier Posted December 24, 2012 Author Share Posted December 24, 2012 A great example Dave! You can not imagine how happy I am that this guy had not mounted it... it was loose in the group... http://www.kaiserscross.com/167501/335722.html I have them in a frame with the back of the loose one facing out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redeagleorder Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 I kind of like the Hindenburg cross for the fact that it shows the wearer was alive in the 30's, something which I think he deserved after seeing the horrors of the trenches. The fact that it doesn't have a big swastika and is not awarded for what the wearer did under the Third Reich also helps. On the other hand the other medals of the third reich put me off more. When seeing a KVK on a WW1 medal bar I sometimes wonder if the wearer was involved in guarding certain camps... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Boonzaier Posted December 24, 2012 Author Share Posted December 24, 2012 When seeing a KVK on a WW1 medal bar I sometimes wonder if the wearer was involved in guarding certain camps... Hi, I think a fraction of the KVKs were for something like that ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dond Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 All medal bars tell the story of a man's life up to the point they were made and for me that's good enough. When I see a TR award on the bar of a WW1 vet I say to myself that he answered the call again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul C Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 All medal bars tell the story of a man's life up to the point they were made and for me that's good enough. When I see a TR award on the bar of a WW1 vet I say to myself that he answered the call again. agreed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Wolfe Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 Because my interest in German medals is pre WWII I like the look of a bar without the TR medals, however, I agree that it shows that the recipient served his country once again after his WWI service. I know some collectors here who think that the British WWII Defence Medal worn with the WWI Trio somehow looks wrong and I'll admit that I do like the trio on their own. Regards Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul R Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 I personally think that any unofficial medal on a bar destroys it, or rather makes it less desirable to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dond Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 Even a regimental commemorative medal? I think those add a bit to the history of the bar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Boonzaier Posted December 24, 2012 Author Share Posted December 24, 2012 Even a regimental commemorative medal? I think those add a bit to the history of the bar. I think this is the crux.... WHAT do you collect? I collect WW1, so I want untainted WW1 bars.... But I also to certain Regiments and I would LOOOOVE to have a bar with THOSE regiments on... or commemorative medals to battles that really interest me... AND I have groups to specific people and there I want ALL their stuff to follow their career, (Except maybe the Treuedienst-Ehrenzeichen) So, although my real interest is PURE WW1, I can be swayed depending on who its to and what the add ons are... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dond Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 I have no hard and fast rule but I know what I like when I see it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redeagleorder Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 All medal bars tell the story of a man's life up to the point they were made and for me that's good enough. When I see a TR award on the bar of a WW1 vet I say to myself that he answered the call again. Very true. Despite my previously mentioned dislike of third reich medals, those also show the person's history. This is why I prefer medal bars to loose medals, medal bars give you a much better sense of the person and what he did, even if you have no name to go with it. On the other hand, the same medals but loose and not attributed to the same person have much less personal meaning (in my opinion) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azyeoman Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 It's all history and so all interesting to study; I personally can't say that I would ever not buy something because of one or more medals; that's just the way they are. As for "ugly" medals, I must add that the US medal for aid is particularly ugly and that hand looks like it's going to give a slap. Why the govt. couldn't come up with something more fitting and more aesthetically pleasing, I'll never know. Saying that, it shows service and as such is part of the group. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IrishGunner Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 Several great comments regarding WW1 to WW2 German bars. And it's all subjective, but I'll add my two cents. On any bar from any period from any other country than Germany, I have no problem with any medal. As for Germany, like many have said, I prefer bars without TR medals (although I do have a couple TR medals). I agree Imperial bars w/o the Hindenburg are a premium, but I have no particular problem with a bar if it has the Hindenburg. I'm becoming more interested in "short" bars - an EK2 and only a State's (ie Wuerttemburg or Hamburg or etc) equivelant military merit medal or cross. These pre-Hindenburg pairs are becoming my favorites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VtwinVince Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 I like bars with only WW1 era or earlier awards on them. Having said that, I just got a bar with the Treudienst, Hindy, Hungary and Bulgaria. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 I kind of like the Hindenburg cross for the fact that it shows the wearer was alive in the 30's, something which I think he deserved after seeing the horrors of the trenches. The fact that it doesn't have a big swastika and is not awarded for what the wearer did under the Third Reich also helps. On the other hand the other medals of the third reich put me off more. When seeing a KVK on a WW1 medal bar I sometimes wonder if the wearer was involved in guarding certain camps... When I see a KVK2X on a bar with nothing else Third Reich era, I would think reservist working somewhere like a Meldeamt or school or construction unit, or the like. Add a 4-year Wehrmacht DA and you often get an E-officer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odulf Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 (edited) To me a medal bar is a reflection of a career and as such it represents the personal and political implications of a life time. Like picture postcard of a street from a set point views it changes over time. In an era when a past career was an upgrade in society, it is so rare to find medal bars who did not pass the 1935-line (due to the life time of recipients). For replacing earlier medals (by all sorts of societies) by a different arrangement of decorations was far byond the purse of most, in times of crises. In all these respectives, we should not leave the general life circumstances of the people in Germany unregarded. If wishes were horses, then beggars would ride: thus, medal bars assembled pre the introduction of the Hindenburg Cross are scarce. That is why we see very little of these, in fact and on photo. Edited December 25, 2012 by Odulf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sambolini Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 Hi, I can't think of anything that screws up a nice bar like a Deutscher Reichskriegerbund Kyffhauser medal does. I can't understand why anyone back then would tarnish their bars with it. LOL Regards, Sam K. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azyeoman Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 Hi, I can't think of anything that screws up a nice bar like a Deutscher Reichskriegerbund Kyffhauser medal does. I can't understand why anyone back then would tarnish their bars with it. LOL Regards, Sam K. You have a point there; I don't have any bars with that on it, but again, it's history and I suppose the man was proud to be in a group with his mates with whom he went through hell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dond Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 You have a point there; I don't have any bars with that on it, but again, it's history and I suppose the man was proud to be in a group with his mates with whom he went through hell. Exactly, the comradeship of being one of the guys, recapturing the wartime spirit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naxos Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 (edited) Hi, I can't think of anything that screws up a nice bar like a Deutscher Reichskriegerbund Kyffhauser medal does. I can't understand why anyone back then would tarnish their bars with it. LOL Regards, Sam K. ... he likes his bling Edited December 25, 2012 by Naxos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dond Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 Nice medal bar. One true award and all the rest are "how do you like me now" blings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azyeoman Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 Well, he got the EK2C... ; ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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