As most of you know Germany was composed of various independent states ranking from kingdoms to free city states. The largest and most powerful was Prussia which eventually forced the German unification in 1871 when the Prussian King also became the German Emperor. Ever since 1813 when the Iron Cross was established it has become the most famous military decoration in the world and is often thought of as a Germany decoration which is incorrect until 1939 when Hitler actually made it an official German award. The 1914 version is the most common and was the lowest priced. The 1939�??s are also common but more expensive since demand is greater for Nazi stuff . Over the last decade things have been changing and now I see dealers asking 75.00 or more for common 2^nd class IC�??s and 1^st class crosses are running from 125.00 to well over 400.00! For an old time collector like me these prices just look nuts. What are they really worth, well I just put one on ebay so we will see. Supply and demand determines prices over all so I did some looking around. German dealers are also listing at these prices and I see that many collectors are now collecting by maker and other varieties. Supply didn�??t change but demand sure seems to have grown, so much so that fakes are now a problem for the 1914�??s.

Illustrated below is a genuine 1914 First class Iron Cross. Genuine 1st class ICs have a black painted iron core within a silver frame mounted on a silver back plate. The flat version with a pin back is the government issue while the convex versions which are often screw backs, are private purchase pieces. Many Germans didn�??t want to risk damaging or losing the originals in combat or had to replace ones that were. There are many different hallmarks on genuine crosses and some are not marked at all. If the cross is not made of multi piece construction and the center core is not magnetic it is almost certainly a fake.

Sooner or later every military medal collector will sell medals on eBay or some other form of indirect sale where the condition of the medal must be described.

First thing to keep in mind is that medals were made to be worn so condition is not as important as it is with coins. Also many military medal collectors are not familiar with basic coin grades; F, VF, EF, Unc, BU. I use my own system which has worked very well for me and is based on the word �??used�?? like very nice used, slightly used or near mint. In addition any flaws must be described including any problems with the ribbon. I use near mint even for medals in mint condition because I don�??t have the time or patience to argue, with every wisenheimer and novice collector, that not every medal is flawless at the time of issue. This is especially true when the medal is made by a private manufacturer. A prime example is the WWII service medal from Utica New York that I currently have listed on eBay and which is illustrated below. At first glance it appears to be worn or cast but the medal is actually in near mint condition! What makes the medal look so misleading is that it is a weak strike that was struck from pitted dies. If that wasn�??t bad enough it was then given an antique golden bronze finish in an attempt to make it look like it was made with a higher grade of metal. The weak strike is most likely due to the fact that the center of the medal is much thicker than the arms which also slope downward and away from the center. Since this is one of the most common of the WWII local issue service medals I am sure that there were at least two production runs. Between the production runs the dies were probably stored on a shelf somewhere and quickly became rusted. Rust when removed leaves pitting and the cleaning also softens the resulting image giving the newly struck medals a worn and cast look. When the false finish was applied to the medal even more detail was lost. The fact that this medal is on a crimped broach proves to me that this medal was not part of the original 1946 production run. So as we can all see, the grading of military medals requires some thought and technical knowledge. It also helps to be a numismatist.

Well the Iola Vintage Military Show has come and gone and yes it was a great show this year. The crowds looked as good as ever to me so the high gas prices didn't keep people away. As usual I met a lot of old friends and interesting veterans who freely shared their historical memories. Our stressed economy has not hit the military collecting hobby as hard as expected and the high prices can still put a long time collector like me into sticker shock. I did over hear some dealers talking about a tighter market and slower sales but as of yet I am still having no trouble selling stuff on eBay and eCrater so maybe their prices are just too high.  From an exhibiters point of view it is very gratifying year after year to watch so many people stop and actually take the time to read the text of my exhibits. As a long time medal collector I am sorry to say that I couldn't find anything to add to my collection. Prices were not the problem here; there simply was nothing that I saw that I needed or wanted. I couldn�??t even find a Marine Corps Good Conduct miniature medal to replace the one my father-in-law lost from his group. On a related topic I see that the local sheriffs deputies are not wearing metal badges any more. All the badges I saw were thin cloth patch like badges that are sewn or stenciled on their shirts. The USO style show by Chicago's Honey Bears on Saturday evening, was great even though the sound level was so high that one couldn't understand most of the words in the songs. One bit of news gleaned from the show was that an old American WWII glider was found in Northern Michigan and is being restored in Wausau Wisconsin. I'll keep you posted as they are planning a dedication event when the restoration is completed.

Most collectors know what is going to happen to their medal collections after or even before they die. Most will have the collection sold and they will rest easy knowing that the medals are being well cared for by other collectors. Some collectors and veterans will toy with the idea of donating their medals to a museum of some sort. As I have said many times before most museums are not too thrilled with donated medals and coins though few will refuse to accept them. A little over a week ago I was traveling through Southeastern Wisconsin and visited three fine museums. All were really nice and had good dedicated staffs but one really proved my point. The museum had an extensive local history of WWII exhibit including uniforms worn by local vets along with their recorded voices telling of their war time experiences. In the far back corner was a locked display cabinet with a glass shelf upon which a small hoard of medals pins and insignia were scattered about willy-nilly with many items upside down or sideways and absolutely nothing attributed. I tracked down the lady in charge and asked her if she would like to know what the items were? �??No�?? she said , �??I know what they are.�?? Then why isn�??t any of it labeled? I asked her. �??Labels would just distract from the exhibit�?? she replied. �??We just wanted to show what kind of souvenirs the guys brought back�?? she continued. �??Oh�?? I said, �??but what about all the US items?�?? A slight frown then arose over her face and she shot back �??I didn�??t really want to bother with that stuff but I couldn�??t leave that shelf empty.�?? Well at that point I figured I had better leave well enough alone. After all if she was responsible for the rest of the museum�??s displays she had earned a 90% positive score overall. So I thanked her and said good bye all the while thinking how much I wished that every veteran who thinks that his medals would be better off in a museum could see the exhibit and talk to the boss lady. If you want to see how I think medals should be displayed come to the Iola Vintage Military Show this weekend and take a look at some of my exhibits.

Now here is one I am sure you haven't seen before.

Chicago City Alderman Star shaped bumper badge circa 1920-30�??s. This badge was made to be mounted above the license plate on an alderman�??s private car so that the car could cross police lines and park anywhere without getting towed. This type of badge, which was most often used by sheriff�??s department officers, is considered scarce and very hard to find by badge collectors. An aldermanic version of this type of badge is virtually unheard of and must be very rare indeed. This badge is made of nickel or chrome plated cast bronze, weighs 10.5 ounces and is 5 inches across. The convex center features the Chicago city coat of arms with the words �??CITY OF CHICAGO�?? at the top and �??ALDERMAN�?? at the bottom. The center of this badge is worn so I don�??t know if this badge was plated when issued or plated later.

For more scans go to http://www.ecrater.com/product.php?pid=2873255

Isn�??t it amazing how fast things can change? One of my favorite military medals is the Humane Action Service medal issued to those who took part in the Berlin Air Lift from June 1948 to Sept. 1949. The Soviets had cut off all land supply routes into the western sector of occupied Berlin in order to starve the city into submission. The US then flew in all the food and fuel needed to save the city�??s population from starving and freezing to death. The children of the same population that only four years earlier we were trying to bomb into oblivion were now being bombed with candy tied to miniature parachutes. This medal is a historic milestone commemorating one of our finest moments.

Yet another interesting military medal group to show you. This one was an easy research job since it came with the soldier�??s discharge! Emil Nelson served with the 127^th Ambulance company (32^nd Division) which was made up of mostly Racine Wisconsin men. On his WWI Victory medal he has the normal four bars for the 32^nd: AISNE-MARNE, OISE-AISNE, MEUSE-ARGONNE and the common DEFENSIVE SECTOR.

On his discharge Nelson is credited for action in the Alsace Sector for which there is no bar. As I found out on the US Militaria Forum when I asked the question, the Defensive Sector Bar was a catch all for all the so called quiet sector actions for which no actual bars were issued. Sergeant Nelson�??s service during the post war occupation of parts of Germany is also mentioned on his record and again there was no bar for that, but later in the 1940�??s the medal with General Pershing�??s profile was issued for that.

This is a great group and as a collector I should be happy with it but darn I sure would have liked to have gotten his dog tags too.

The two years following the end of the First World War saw the greatest flood of military service medals in our history. Since the Federal Government didn�??t show any interest in issuing a WWI service medal nearly everyone else decided to make sure that their veterans got a medal. State and local government units, veterans and fraternal groups, employers and even mothers groups issued medals. The medal illustrated below was issued by the Mothers of The 32^ND Division to their boys. The obverse has the American Eagle, the Wisconsin State Arms and the 32^ND Division Red Arrow symbol. The reverse has a blank name space and a nine line inscription. The medal was issued as a pocket piece without a loop or ribbon and a blank name space. When you see one like the one below with a ribbon and a name engraved on the reverse then you know that someone went the extra mile for their veteran or to sell you the medal. If the name checks out then you really have a nice medal.

It may bug me more than others but I think this topic needs to be aired. Almost every where I look I find locally issued WWI souvenir and service medals listed as though they are the same thing. They are not the same thing!! One needs to read the inscriptions on the medals. If on the medal we find the words SOUVENIR or WELCOME HOME CELEBRATION or similar wording like the two medals illustrated below on the left it is a SOUVENIR medal which was issued to organizers and workers of the event and sold to the public to finance the event. To get this medal one did not have to be a military veteran. Like the ribboned medal at the right, if we find the words �??Presented by�?�. For�?�. World War�?��?? then we have an actual service medal that was only given to actual war veterans. That distinction makes a world of difference and I sure wish that everyone would care enough to list these medals correctly.

War On Terror

The real War on Terror should not only be directed against an enemy that is depicted so unrealistically as on the privately issued medal below which portrays an Arab on a camel surrendering to a jet plane or even the much more deadly Islamic Jihadists who can�??t think of anything better to do with their lives than to commit suicide in the name of their religion while expecting to be rewarded with a 72 virgin heavenly orgy. No the real threat to the American way of life are the cyber terrorists world wide who create spy ware and computer viruses. These are the true evil geniuses who will someday bring our lives to a grinding halt. If our government isn�??t already doing so then it is about time we establish a special agency to back track these destructive creations to their sources. If we find that the terrorists responsible are within our jurisdiction; they should be given an extended tropical island vacation at our world famous government resort in Guantanamo, Cuba. For the creative terrorists who are beyond our reach or even part of a hostile foreign government, we should present them with our first place grand prize, a Tomahawk Cruise Missile delivered free of charge to their front door or computer location.