TR Medal Bar Opinions

[Joe D]

Hi Everybody,

Here is a medal bar I have in my collection. It was posted in the collections forum and received some mixed opinions. What do you guys think? This is the same picture as in my earlier post.

[Joe D]

This is a new picture with my camera flash turned off.

[Joe D]

The back.

[Joe D]

I know the pictures are not very good with out the flash. The ribbons are actually quite aged. I hope this helps.

[Brian R]

Joe-

This medal bar was discussed a while back...

http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...ight=medal+bar

It looks like it could be a "put together" bar made of real medals - the wear just seems too inconsistent from medal to medal. It is strange that there is a 12 year Luft service medal but no four year award. Also, three Flower War medals on one bar is highly suspect.

Brian

[Joe D]

Hi Brian,

Did you use to own this one?

Thanks,
Joe

Joe-

This medal bar was discussed a while back...

http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...ight=medal+bar

It looks like it could be a "put together" bar made of real medals - the wear just seems too inconsistent from medal to medal. It is strange that there is a 12 year Luft service medal but no four year award. Also, three Flower War medals on one bar is highly suspect.

Brian

[Brian R]

Joe-

This bar was for sale by a guy on ebay a while back. I emailed him for images of the obverse and posted them here on the forum.

Brian

[Mark S.]

This medal bar is a mess.

For starters,

I agree, these look like real medals, but surely didnt appear on this bar. The tag on the back is probably right too. The possibility exsists that this was put together ad hoc for an occupation troop by someone who had the access, but not the know how. A little thread, a little effort....


Obvious errors:

there should be a 4 year to go with that 12 year and
wearing all three Flower war medals on a Wehrmacht bar was prohibited.

for some reason, the Ost medal and the KVK dont appear to be wrapped correctly either. I would be curious to know how wide the ribbons are too. Look at this one and notice the difference:

[Joe D]

Thanks Brian for the information. I purchased this bar from a dealer at the last Max show. He guranteed it to be original. I guess he will be receiving a phone call tomorrow. I have tried to be very carefull in collecting, I should have known better on this one. Thanks for all the input everybody.

[Joe D]

Hi Mark,
I think you hit the nail right on the head with your point. The medals, material, and even construction to a point look good. Unfortunately, done post war without proper regulation knowledge.

Thanks,

Joe

[David B]

Mark,
Just as a matter of interest, why was the wearing of all three Flower War medals on a Wehrmacht bar prohibited?

Many Thanks

[Rick Research]

Regulations never have to make sense, they just "were." There was also a specific ban against a member of the Wehrmacht NOT being able to earn a Sudeten AND a Westwall... no logical "explanation," it just "was." Yet bars like that DO turn up, from say an RAD member or civil servant who earned both and then went into the Wehrmacht.

The "two only" rule applied ONLY to members of the Armed Forces earning them, and not to political organizations. I suppose the police were also exempt from the two limit, but have never seen a Polizei group with more than ONE of the 1938-39s on a bar, anyway.

The sheer UGLINESS of the bar, as Mark said, is one thing that raises concerns. It's within the range of Crappy Jobs I've seen, though, that if the THREE "flowers" (4, actually, with the Prague bar-- this is a combination usually encountered for a bodyguard member of the SS Leibstandarte entourage) were not on there, and the "12 without 4," I'd just say it was a poorly done period piece.

If you look again, you will notice that the "12" eagle is much larger and the swastika is CUT OUT (compare with the lone 4 in the first scan starting this thread)--

That is a STICKPIN eagle being used here, NOT a medal bar eagle.

[Joe D]

Hi Rick,

The bar is as good as gone. The dealer gave me a song and dance about being a vet purchase over 40 years ago. He will have to exchange it for something else.

[Rick Research]

I didn't say the eagle wasn't original: it is a STICKPIN eagle, not a medal bar device.

I don't happen to have either of those "references," but I have thumbed Forman and been, um, underwhelmed by absurd mistakes which remain edition after edition after edition.

I offer my experience based upon going into four decades collecting, and pawing over every medal and ribbon bar that crosses my path, not selling.

Don't have that other book, either.

Don't need it. I e-write my own!

http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/ribbons/index.htm