Questions about the QSA

[lambert]

Hi all.

Again I ask for help in my search found another South African medal "QSA" with 3 claps. however it is in Bronze (did not know about the Bronze medal) the seller said she apparently has no inscription on the edge (!!!) this is common?

Cheers

Lambert

Edited November 7, 2015 by lambert

[QSAMIKE]

32 minutes ago, lambert said:

Hi all.

Again I ask for help in my search found another South African medal "QSA" with 3 claps. however it is in Bronze (did not know about the Bronze medal) the seller said she apparently has no inscription on the edge (!!!) this is common?

Cheers

Lambert

Good Morning Lambert......

The combination you state is impossible...... Or I should say Officially Impossible, maybe made up.....

1.  The bronze medal was issued normally issued to Indian Troops......

2.  The bronze medal was never issued with clasps / bars......

3.  There are instances where the medal is un-named but this is very uncommon and is normally only on samples that have been given to museums by the mint......

Take a look at the ABW forum site here:  http://www.angloboerwar.com/medals-and-awards/british/1875-queens-south-africa-medal

 

Mike

 

Edited November 7, 2015 by QSAMIKE

[lambert]

Thank Mike.

I found it very strange especially because it is in bronze and not be named .. I believe the seller is mistaken about being bronze (as a person can not tell the difference !?) I will ask some pictures to clarify this issue.

Cheers

Lambert

[peter monahan]

I believe the bronze medals were also issued to Africans [blacks] in some of the labour corps and so on, but I haven't been looking at QSAs in several decades and my memroy is far from perfect.

I did some research on the ones issued to Indian troops, which probably numbered several thousand in all, as many cavalry sowars arrived in SA with drafts of remounts for the Imperial troops, most of which came in from Australia via India.  To the best of my recollection, all I ever saw or heard of were nemed, so I suspect that if it is bronze and not named it is, as Mike says, an unissued specimen.

[paul wood]

Interestingly although the bronze QSAs were issued without clasps the roll lists clasp entitlements, which makes one think that there had been an intention to issue them with class but to save time/money the idea was abandoned.

Paul

[QSAMIKE]

1 hour ago, peter monahan said:

I believe the bronze medals were also issued to Africans [blacks] in some of the labour corps and so on, but I haven't been looking at QSAs in several decades and my memroy is far from perfect.

I did some research on the ones issued to Indian troops, which probably numbered several thousand in all, as many cavalry sowars arrived in SA with drafts of remounts for the Imperial troops, most of which came in from Australia via India.  To the best of my recollection, all I ever saw or heard of were nemed, so I suspect that if it is bronze and not named it is, as Mike says, an unissued specimen.

Good Morning Peter.......

I understand following the thread on the ABW Forum and the important decisions book that no medals of any kind were issued to Africans (blacks) for the Boer War..... 

The estimated total of silver and bronze medals issued to Indian troops is 1800......

Mike

[peter monahan]

Mike

I won't dispute your facts, as you're clearly the expert.  Might I have been thinking of non-whites like Gandhi and his comrades in the bearer companies, rather than blacks, as recipients of bronze QSAs or am I still off base?  As I say, it was a long time ago and the old brain is not always firing on all cylinders these days! ;)