✚9192✚ German Prussian pre WW1 Military Honor Award 2nd Class KRIEGSVERDIENST

Original German / Prussian Military Honor Award 2nd Class - WW1, NICE WORN CONDITION - ON NEW RIBBON, VERY HARD TO FIND - RARE MEDAL, THIS IS A NICE LATE WAR ZINC EXAMPLE (1916 - 1918), DIAMETER: cca 40 mm, HARD TO FIND - REALLY GOOD AND RARE PIECE, THE EYELET SEEMS REPAIRED

HISTORY OF THE AWARD:

Prussian Military Honor Award 2nd Class (Preußen Militär-Ehrenzeichen II. Klasse) was awarded after February 27, 1864. - during the 1864 German-Danish War (Deutsch-Dänischer Krieg) and 1866 Austro-Prussian War (Österreichisch-preussischer Krieg) conflicts. The pieces awarded during those conflicts had a piece of semi-flat-section stock which was formed into a loop and soldered to the top rim of the medal to form a suspension eyelet. The award was a round silver medal 40mm in diameter. On the obverse was the inscription: “KRIEGS/ VERDIENST” surrounded by a laurel wreath bound with a bow at the bottom. On the reverse was the crowned cipher “W R” (Wilhelm I). According to Hessenthal und Schreiber, the medal weighed 22 grams. However, this author has an example of the later-type medal that weighs 23 grams. For combatants, the medal was worn suspended from a 35 mm wide black ribbon with two (2) 7.5 mm-wide white side-stripes, each 2mm from the edge of the ribbon. For non-combatants, the medals was worn suspended from a 35 mm-wide white ribbon with two (2) 7.5 mm-wide black side-stripes, each 2mm from the edge of the ribbon. Note that these ribbons were the of the same color and design as those utilized for the Iron Cross 2nd Class. The later (WW1 pattern) examples are only around 25 mm in diameter, there are very late (1917-18) zinc made examples too.