WWII Crimped Brooch Theater Medals

[BigJohn#3RD]

Dennis :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: Great class on comparing past and current strikes of campaign medals. I'm sure it is a great help to all members, old salts and newbee's alike.

Regards

John

[M35A2runner]

Its nice to see these in the boxs, very nice.

[rafaelega]

 

Close up of the PTO medal. Again you can see the difference in the medals. The re-strike on the LEFT lacks the crisp detail of the original on the RIGHT. If you look at the ship on the right side of the medal, on the original you can see that there is a zig zag camouflage pattern sculpted on that ship. On the re-strike that camouflage detail is almost gone. Also a lot of the detail on the Palm fronds and tree trunk are gone from the re-strike.

 

 

Well done!. Also we can see that the trunks and airplanes are wider than on the original...I am learning a lot with your explanation. thanks for share it!

[U.S. medal collector]

That is reaaly great information. I have a WW2 ETO medal with four campaign stars that has a thicker medalion than was made at that time for the most part. On the ribbon bar that came with the medal, it is hallmarked with B26 on the holder that is of the clutch two pin style. Does anyone have information on when this medal and ribbon bar weree made as they look WW 2 stylish and do have all the crisp features on the medalion as the ones you have posted with all the detail showing and the WW2 look, not that blackwash that you showed on the newer ones.

 

George [email protected]

[Robbo]

That is reaaly great information. I have a WW2 ETO medal with four campaign stars that has a thicker medalion than was made at that time for the most part. On the ribbon bar that came with the medal, it is hallmarked with B26 on the holder that is of the clutch two pin style. Does anyone have information on when this medal and ribbon bar weree made as they look WW 2 stylish and do have all the crisp features on the medalion as the ones you have posted with all the detail showing and the WW2 look, not that blackwash that you showed on the newer ones.

 

George [email protected]

 

George.

B26 or Bende & Sons, Inc., Passaic, NJ. are makers of ribbons etc, so I would say that they made your ribbon and constructed the bar. The alpha numeric hallmark code and clutch back style of the bar would put this at a more recent manufacture date for me. Post pictures of the complete set and I, or others could be more precise and it will serve well for future visitors to this page.

 

Cheers.

Rob

[Robbo]

I've just checked and Bende & Sons, Inc. were founded in 1962. which helps date your bar at least.

[Tim B]

It should be noted that there are strike differences between period manufacturers as well. Additionally, as the US Mint hand finished these medals (which probably contributed to the successive delays in issuing) there are differences in the US Mint produced examples as time progressed.

 

Here's a comparison of two US Mint issued European African Middle Eastern (EAME) Campaign Medals. The example on the left is with the slot brooch and the example on the right with the crimped brooch. Both came in the original box of issue.

 

You can see small details are sharper and more defined on the slot brooch example in addition to the brighter polished surface which increases the contrast.

 

 

As Kurt previously stated, the US Mint produced medals have a thicker planchet when compared to other manufacturers. I notice this on all their campaign medals, with the Asiatic-Pacific being the most noticeable of the three WWII campaign medals.

 

Here's a comparison of the EAME produced by the US Mint (bottom) and another by the Medallic Art Company (top).

 

Note the thickness as well as the more raw edge to the US Mint planchet.

 

[Tim B]

And here's a couple more showing the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal. The US Mint produced example (crimped brooch) is on the left in the first PIC and on the bottom in the second PIC. Again, note the differences in thickness and the raw edge when compared to another Medallic Art Company produced medal.

 

Tim

[Tim B]

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[Tim B]

Interestingly, the American Theatre Campaign Medal is not much different in thickness. I had briefly discussed this with Jeff Floyd elsewhere and we speculated it might have something to do with the basic design.

 

As the obverse design on both the Asiatic-Pacific and EAME medals carry to the very edge of the planchet, the blank planchet would have to be pretty thick in order to keep the details sharp to the edges when stamping. A thicker planchet would prevent cracking during the successive stamping. A thicker planchet would also allow for a more detailed strike and we see the US Mint produced items are in fact more detailed than the other period manufacturers.

 

However, when we look at the American Theatre Campaign Medal, the design is more centralized and the obverse design seems to slowly taper off towards the edges. In this case, perhaps a thicker planchet was not needed. Jeff thinks it might also have to do with the amount of metal needed to produce these medals. On an indivdual basis, it wouldn't make any difference but, when we are talking millions of medals being produced, then that little amount adds up and would certainly be a factor in cost as well as availabilty of raw material after a major war.

 

Here's a couple more comparisons. The first is between the US Mint (bottom) and Medallic Art Company (top). Note the slight difference in thickness, but note the US Mint medal still has a more raw edge to it.

 

Tim

[Tim B]

And a comparison to a Heckethorn Mfg. & Supply Co. example (top). Note both have raw edges.