Good afternoon gents,
I was at the Aldershot Medal Fair yesterday and I found something that surprised me and I thought may be of use to other collectors who don't specialise in medals but like me have an interest;
Medal ribbons have always been an issue as they wear out long before the medal especially before they end up in the safe custody of a proper collector!
This is no more true than in the case of WWI medals that have lain in sheds, attics and cupboards for 100 years now.
The three most commonly found are of course the "Trio" of 1914 or 1914-15 Star, The British War Medal and The Victory Medal aka "Pip, Squeak and Wilfred"! Many are found without ribbons and those that have been worn at so many remembrance parades and functions have seen better days so many veterans and descendants have wanted to replace them.
There have long been "aftermarket" ribbons for exactly this purpose but in recent years with the change of manufacturing techniques these replacements are now not much like the originals at all.
Finding original ribbons for the BWM and Victory Medal is still possible as many were never used and became separated from the medals over time.
For some reason the ribbon for the 1914-15 Star is much harder to find and by its very nature is harder to reproduce so that is the one I focus on here.
The reproduction ribbons have always been very very obvious and not very appealing. They stick out like a sore thumb!
What I saw yesterday was a large range of modern "watered" ribbons very close to the originals and the quality is far superior to that hitherto available. They are all discernable as reproductions but if you consider the examples I show here it becomes clear that maybe one need not try so hard to find an original unless you are as picky as we collectors tend to be.
The older reproduction is almost "pixelated" in appearance and someone with knowledge will spot it from some distance. The new "watered" ribbon is much closer to the original and most would consider it a good replacement if not actually mistake it for the original.
The main differences seem to me to be in the proportions of the stripes of red,white and blue. The width of the "watering" is less on the reproduction, the ribbing is more pronounced on the reproduction and the white edge less so.
These were not being sold as originals and were offered by very prominent and respected dealers as reproductions. However, I am sure we all know that one way and another they will end up on medals in groups without being declared as replacements.
I like them in their place but;
Caveat Emptor
What do you guys think?
Regards
Mark
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