Fake Reference Book

[Toolkit]

I will be most obliged if anyone would give me a recommendation for a reference book (with lots of colour photo's!) that will help me with the collecting of these marvellous awards and decorations. I would prefer a generic oversight as the specific tend to (to my mind at least) bog down with detail. I just want big and colourful, not small and dull. The line below is all I can afford at present but they'll do until my lottery win!Thank you in advance. Terry

[redeagleorder]

A lot depends on whether you want it in English or German....

[Toolkit]

Ich würde es lieber in Englisch als mein Deutsch ist nicht geeignet für den beteiligten technischen Diskussionen.

[Guest Rick Research]

Would that it were so easy! There is simply no one single overview, though there were and are many fine specialized volumes if you narrow down your interests.

Where do those movie prop quality (and I mean that in a mostly good way) medal bars come from? Who is making them? Fairly decent looking (a GOLD Red Eagle Order?) but awards make no sense as a real bar. Impossible!

Best advice is always: save money for good stuff, don't spend it on bad. Replicas will never be worth what they cost.

At least nowadays (the ancient one croaks, rocking in his chair, ) there is all this wonderful stuff online in COLOR. When I started out 50 years ago, illustrations were 1930s cigarette card album reprint quality and almost entirely in black and white... of obverses only. We even had line drawings books!

Any specific questions, just ask. Somebody will know.

Edited June 15, 2013 by Rick Research

[speedytop]

Hi Terry, hi Rick,

this is one of the sources (former Göde):

http://www.muenzkontor.de/themen-muenzen-und-praegungen/orden.html

Trust Rick: "Replicas will never be worth what they cost."

Especially such ugly and expensive pieces of metal.

Uwe

[Toolkit]

Mine came from 'Down Under' and the Romanian Order of the Star at the end was put there at my request as I fancied it. The others were supposed to be a Saxon Officer's awards of that era. Are they really that bad??

[Guest Rick Research]

Except for the inexplicable gold color of the Red Eagle, they look really good--perfect for accurate (how rare that is) movie use. The ribbons are very nicely done as well-- all luckily in materials that could never fool anyone.

Now, as to a representation of a former Saxon officer's awards in 1935 (Hindenburg Cross):

1) wrong precedence-- see the precedence rules in the Ribbon Bar Gallery, state by state and imprial era versus Third Reich

2) Prussian Red Eagle--even if CORRECT silver color--was 99.99999% for colonial actions after 1866--and there is no colonial campaign medal 1900+

3) the wartime Saxon Albert Order is Knight 2nd--for Lieutenants

4) the peacetime Saxon Merit is for Captains. See #3

5) the peacetime Württemberg Friedrich is for Captains. See #3 again

6) most Saxon army personnel did not get the 1897 Wilhelm I Centenary Medal--only regiments whose "Chief" the Kaiser was, or in Alsace-Lorraine "Reichs" mixed XV. Armeekorps

7) there is no long service award

If I had a parade tunic for a known officer/general whose medal bar was never likely to turn up--or be affordable by a mere mortal--that is exactly how I would replicate a specific set of awards. Looks great, if done well.

Edited June 16, 2013 by Rick Research

[Toolkit]

Thanks all. I suppose then that the next bar I wanted made would probably make no sense whatsoever? More a sort of Ruritanian conglomerate? But they look so pretty!! I swear that my Mother was frightened by a Gypsy when I was in the womb. Anything primary coloured and I'm all over it. That's my problem. I'm more interested in the look of the display than the authenticity.

Saxon Ernestine House Order

Saxon Order of St Henry

Bavarian Merit Order

Order of the Hohenzollern

Baden Order of the Zahrangen Lion

Hamburg Hanseatic Cross

Austrian Merit Order

Hungarian Military Merit Order

Order of St Gregory

Bulgarian Military Merit Order

Wendish Crown Order

Austrian Tuetonic Knights Order

Order of the Hohenzollern

Austrian Crown Order

Edited June 16, 2013 by Toolkit