US Medal Collection For Reveiw

[BodhiEtheridge]

Hello, I have these US medals and when I bought them I would of been between to age of 6-11. I am still a younger collector but have moved on the Third Reich items.
I have little to no knowledge on these so I hope someone can pick out any fakes. Sorry about image quality I don’t know why it has been lowed.


Please ask for detailed images if needed.

Thanks,
Bodhi

[08SMLE48]

Hi Bodhi,,
Not necessarily fake. Not sure what your asking? Most are modern production but I wouldn’t call them fake as they were not produced to deceive. You would have to post photos of individual medals front and back and be more specific in what info you are looking for.

[MAP]

You did a nice job as a "kid". A very nice collection and variety.

Agree. Probably most/all are original but there are fakes out there so unless we looked at each one it would be hard to tell. Also the types of awards range from WW2 to the modern era.

The ones in the blue boxes are most likely WW2 era issued (or right after for the campaign awards).

That said, photos of the reverse will tell us the pin style which will give us more clarity as to the time period they were produced. To this day you can still get "original" replacement WW2 awards but that were just made officially for the Govt.

For 100% accuracy we would need to see each one individually.

[Rakkasan187]

Bodhi,

This is a nice collection of US campaign medals and commendation medals. The only way I will be able to tell if these are "restrikes" would be to see the type of pin backing they have. Restrikes are not reproductions but medals that have been restruck from the original dies and they are used as replacement medals for many veterans who may have lost their originally issued medals. The blue cardboard boxed medals will have a label on the side of the box and it may have a manufacture date. It appears that the US American Campaign medal in the blue box is a WW2 era medal. Again I would have to see the back of the medal and specifically the pin area where the brooch suspends the medal planchet from the ribbon. There are a few types of suspension variations to include slot brooch, split brooch and wrap brooch methods of attaching the ribbon and the medal planchet together..

In your first photo the medal in the blue had plastic case is the Army Achievement Medal (The Abbreviation is AAM) This was established in the early 1980's and was a lower grade achievement medal that is second to the Army Commendation Medal which has more precedence on the ranking of US achievement medals. The medal is presented in this case currently to Soldiers who achieve some type of recognition or distinction not involving combat. The Army Commendation Medal (Which is the green and white medal in the last picture on the lower right) has been around since WW2 (as a ribbon) and this decoration can be awarded in both a peace-time environment for extraordinary achievement or in a combat situation which could possibly be award with a "v" device attachment which would indicate a Valorous Act of heroism. This decoration would be lower in distinction than that of the Bronze Star medal which is the next medal in the first picture in the blue plastic case. This medal has also been around since WW2 and has been awarded for meritorious acts of heroism as well as valorous acts in Combat as well as in non-hostile situations.. The "V" device again distinguishes between a valor act and a meritorious service act.. The only thing missing in your Bronze Star set is the pin on lapel pin...

You have some State decorations in blue boxes and I am not sure what state awarded them without seeing closer photos..

You have a Women's Army Corps Medal, Army of Occupation Medal, Asiatic Pacific Campaign medal as well as the European African Middle Eastern Campaign Medal. (Without seeing the back I can't tell if WW2 issue or not.

On a side note, the Army of Occupation Medal with the front of the medal showing the towers of the Ludendorff Bridge also known as the Remagen Bridge and the back side shows Mount Fujiyama which is the symbol of Japan.. This medal was awarded to all Soldiers who served in Germany or Japan under the occupation forces and it was not uncommon for the Soldiers who served in Japan to turn the medal planchet around to show MT Fuji on the front to show they served on occupation duty in Japan rather than Germany. There was also a Navy/Marine Corps version of the Occupation Medal awarded to Sailors and Marines on Occupation Duty..

I was awarded the Army of Occupation Medal for my service while stationed in Berlin with the US army in the 1980s. Before the Berlin Wall came down and Germany was unified, Berlin was still an occupied city.

You have a very nice medal collection and when you have time take some pictures of the backs so we can tell if they are WW2 issue or not..

You also have a Civilian Achievement Medal in the mix. It is awarded to Department of Defense Civilians. The Official name is the Army Commanders Award for Civilian Service. This is the green and white ribbon and the medal planchet is the star surrounded by 3 triangles.

You have 3 Army good conduct medals and it looks like the medal in the blue box without the ribbon may be WW2 issue. The second Army Good conduct medal in the blue box with the ribbon is a current issue medal and the single Army good conduct medal that is without the box looks to be a WW2 era medal..

The other boxed medal with the medal planchet that has a powder horn, torch and horn is an Armed Forces Reserve Medal. The back side of the medal planchet will have the seal of one of the Armed Forces, Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force or Coast Guard Reserve. The label may also be on the side of the box and it may indicate which Armed Forces Reserve Component the medal will be for.

The other multi colored ribbon in the box is the Armed Forces Reserve Achievement Medal. This is still wrapped in plastic and is a current issue medal for members serving in the Army Reserve. This is similar to the Army Good Conduct Medal and is awarded to reservists for 3 years of honorable service in the Reserves. Subsequent awards of this medal are in made by placing an oak leaf cluster on the ribbon for every 3 years of service.

The 2 World War Two Victory medals also look like the yare WW2 era but once again without seeing the backsides with the pin attachments it would be difficult to tell..

Again, this is a great US medal collection and you have most if not all of the WW2 era campaign medals that were awarded...

Hope this information helps and if you have any questions please let me know

Best regards and wishes..

Happy New Year

Smitty

[08SMLE48]

The two medals with red white and blue ribbons on the far left in the first photo are commemorative medals from the state of Missouri for service in the First World War.

[BodhiEtheridge]

Hello, thank you guys for the great responses with lots of info. I was aware of the fact that they are not all ww2 era many are post war, some are pre war. I will post the backs up close. The second image top right corner are medals given in Missouri, I live here in St. Louis.

Thanks again,
Bodhi

[BodhiEtheridge]

These are the backs again if you guys need more images just ask.

[MAP]

I just had a long post typed out and my PC crashed...........Ugg.

OK Here are some links that explain the types of rear hardware and the era.

Collecting U.S. Military Medals: The Value is in the Brooch | WorthPoint

Brooch or Broach?? - MEDALS & DECORATIONS - U.S. Militaria Forum

[BodhiEtheridge]

If you click the Image the image quality will go up but not by a whole lot.

[MAP]

These are the backs again if you guys need more images just ask.

I'm assuming you know what these all are....so won't go into that level of detail.

Photo 1: All are crimp brooch style. Saw limited introduction just after WW2 but was widely introduced in 1962 and used till today. Sometimes difficult to date, but markings on the reverse does help narrow it down. I can't see any markings on these
Photo 2: First two are crimp brooch. But the 1st is produced later ('80's) as it says Graco GI. The third is a Slot Brooch. This started in 44/45? and went up to 1962
Photo 3: All 1980's crimp brooch.
Photo 4 & 5: With the glare I can't see if there are markings. But both are crimp brooch style. Are the dates on the boxes? Unless swapped out (happened to me), this (as well as when the medal was introduced) should tell you when they were made. the 1st (Army Armed Forces Reserved was instituted in the 1950's. The American Defense is probably just post WW2 when the vast majority of these were awarded.
Photo 6: Post WW1 / Pre WW2
Photo 7/8: 1980's
Photo 9: Slot Brooch - So between 1944 and 1962
Photo 10: 1st is a crimp brooch US Achievement Medal. Yours is Army and was introduced in 1981. The 2nd is a slot brooch so '44 to ~60's.

Note: These are approx. dates. New old stock slot brooches were still being issued well after these dates.

The good news is that while most are post war, there is little reason for them to be tampered with to increase value (i.e. swapping out a crimp brooch for a full wrap brooch).