About Southern Africa Medal.

[Georg14]

Good evening, Gentlemen.  Can anyone explain. Information from some sources (eg Wikipedia):  metal from a Soviet tank captured in Angola used to manufacture a limited number of the Southern Africa Medal.  So, is metal from the tank really added only to the limited part of medals, in what numbers range ?  Or all the medals contained metal of the tank ?  And in fact it was really so (about limitation) ?  Thanks.

[peter monahan]

I had difficulty finding anything other than the Wikipedia article you mention, from which the relevant phrase is: 

"used to manufacture a limited number of the Southern Africa Medal, including the specimen medal depicted." [emphasis added]

I would interpret that as meaning that the alloy used for the first batch of medals 'including the specimen medal depicted'  contained copper from the Russian tank(s) but that subsequent batches did not.  How one would tell whether or not a given medal was par tof that lot I don't know, bar the obvious: most of the first ones issued would have been that lot.  Even then, if that was a one-off proces, as the article suggests, then it may well be that the medals from that batch were given to officers or help back for 'special awards'.

An intriguing puzzle!

Edited August 30, 2017 by peter monahan

[Georg14]

Good evening.  Unfortunately I haven't recorded information sources (it was a few years ago), but there was also information that only the first part about 20 000 pieces was stamps with application/addition specifically of iron from the tank, but because of difficulties of stamping of such alloy subsequently only copper, nickel, etc. from this tank were added to alloy. It is also visible on structure and quality of medals. This question can probably be clarified by colleagues from South Africa, if they are here …

[Chris Boonzaier]

Hi,

 

according to the Wikipedia page the Version 2 of the medal contained the copper from the tank....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Africa_Medal