Polish medal

Discussion in 'Poland' started by trooper1854, Nov 28, 2011.

  1. trooper1854

    trooper1854 Junior Member

    I have the medals of a relative who fought with Free polish forces in North Africa and in Italy.

    There is one I can not identify. Does anyone recognise it?

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    Stamped on the back is "ST.925 JERUSALEM"

    Any information would be helpful.
     
  2. ceolredmonger

    ceolredmonger Member

    Trooper 1854

    What you have is not a medal as such - i.e. not an official award. It appears to be a religious medallion. It features the Polish coat of arms as they were used during the second republic - 1927-39, on a Polish style cross with four equal armed crosses with the latin monogram for Christ (IHS). There is no obviously Orthodox symbolism so it most likely Roman Catholic.

    ST will refer to a maker or retailer, 925 to 92.5% silver (Sterling silver), Jerusalem may mean it is a souvenir of the place or may be retail reference.

    Presumably your relative was either religious or a loved one who gave him the token was (Spike Milligan's biographies refer to his mother constantly sending him religious medals - does it smell of soap?).

    Who did your relative serve with? Many of the Polish veterans stories of how they got to the desert in the first place are hair raising and/or inspiring.

    I trust that this helps.

    Keith Matthews
     
  3. trooper1854

    trooper1854 Junior Member

    Keith, you are a star! Thank you very much.
    Do you know if it had a particular ribbon, as with a medal or would it have been worn on a chain?
    The man it belonged to was an officer in the Polish Army when Germany invaded in '39. He escaped to England and joined the Free Polish Forces, I believe he was with an artillery unit. He served in North Africa, and Italy, he was at Monte Casino.
    He has a 1939-1945 medal and the Italy Star along with another Polish medal.
     
  4. trooper1854

    trooper1854 Junior Member

    Just though you might be interested to see the other medal.
    It is a religious medal awarded for pilgrimage to the Holly Land, so its not a military one, but its interesting one none the less.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  5. ceolredmonger

    ceolredmonger Member

    Now that one is interesting ..... Unfortunately, I don't have the references to identify it. I would get it looked at professionally. It looks to me like it could be a papal medal possibly for a lower rank associated with the Order of the Holy Sepulcher.

    Interesting, I would guess that your relative had some kind of honourary role associated with Jerusalem. Unfortunately this has now gone outside my experience. Good luck!
     
  6. Assam

    Assam Senior Member

    I found this snippet on the net

    "While not a Polish medal, many Poles stationed in Palestine were awarded the Jerusalem Cross.
    This version in bronze was awarded to enlisted ranks while a slightly larger version in silver was generally awarded to Officers. Some examples also have an additional bar on the ribbon "Jerusalem".

    "
    Later, a Polish Jerusalem Cross was awarded as a commemorative decoration by the Exile government. It has a large Polish Eagle in a shield on the obverse and is on a different ribbon (white with a wide red stripe on each side). "

    Taken from:

    EXILE

    regards

    simon
     

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