Original Item: One-of-a-kind. This is a very nice genuine medal bar, owned by a German soldier who fought during WWI and wore these medals in parades during the 1920s and 1930s. Some of the ribbon colors have faded a bit, but overall the set is quite eye catching. They are for a soldier of the State of Saxony as his medals show. The mount is marked on the backside D.R.G.M.. The acronym D.R.G.M. with or without punctuation stands for Deutsches Reichsgebrauchsmuster, meaning that the design or function of an item was officially registered inside all of the Germany states and not only locally registered as it was the case before the introduction of centralized registration.

The set of 4 medals offered in good condition is mounted on a metal backing board with pin and consists of the following medals:

- Imperial German WWI Iron Cross 1914 2nd Class Medal
- Kingdom of Saxony Friedrich August Medal with Combat Ribbon
- Kingdom of Saxony Albertus Animosus Silver Cross
- German WWI Honor Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (Hindenburg Cross) Medal (This example shows some tarnishing on the right side but overall in good shape)

Below is an explanation of each medal in detail:

German WWI Prussian Iron Cross 2nd Class with Ribbon:
Established by Frederick William in 1813 for gallantry in action, the decoration was revived several times for later conflicts. The bulk of the issues are divided into 1st and 2nd class versions, but a rare and superior 'Grand Cross' was also awarded for successful field commanders. During WW1 the lower decoration was freely awarded with 5½ million second class types issued.

Originally, the Iron Cross was an award of the Kingdom of Prussia, however given Prussia's pre-eminent place in the German Empire formed in 1871, it became an award for all of Germany.
The basic design of the WW1 crosses is a central cross patee struck from iron and mounted in a silver frame which has a raised crenulated decorative border. The obverse of the cross bears the date 1914 under a crowned 'W' monogram. Reverse bears an oak leaf cluster with the date of the decoration’s institution, 1813 underneath - the crowned initials of Frederick William are in the top arm above the oak leaf cluster. Suspension for second-class types is by means of a ring, and frequently this ring bears a maker's stamp.

Please examine the edge seam for authentication, which is not present on reproductions. Iron crosses were commonly constructed from an iron core sandwiched in a surrounding two part silver frame, normally the seam of these two silver parts is visible around the edge of the cross as is seen on this fine example.

Kingdom of Saxony Friedrich August Medal
The Friedrich August Medal was awarded by King Friedrich August III, and instituted by Saxony on April 23, 1905. It was awarded "for the recognition of merit in teams from the sergeant down and to civilians of equal rank in war and peace." The bronze medal was awarded to all ranks up to private and silver from non-commissioned officers .

The award is made of bronze or bronzed iron or a silver round medal with a diameter of approx. 28 mm. The front face of the medal shows the intertwined letters FAR (Friedrich August Rex) under the Saxon crown . The cipher is surrounded by a laurel wreath that is open at the top and bound together at the bottom. The reverse simply is marked Friedrich August Medaille, with decorations around it.

This medal is held by a blue and yellow ribbon indicating it was issued during wartime, 1914-1918.

Kingdom of Saxony Albertus Animosus Silver Cross
This medal was based on The Duke of Saxony (Albert the Bold) and founder of the Albertine branch of the ruling Wettin family. The order was founded in his memory on 31 December 1850 by King Friedrich Augustus II to recognise 'all those who render useful service to the state, distingushed civil merit, science, art, et., On 29 October 1866, following the Austro-Prussian War the Order was amended to include awarding for both civilian merit in war and as a military award. The silver gilt Latin cross is white enamel with silver gilt swords between the arms, with scroll and original loop for attached orange and white ribbon. Also Maker's mark 'G' (Glaser und Sohn of Dresden) on the base. The inside has the head of Albert the Bold (Albrecht der Beherzten)in relief facing right within a blue enamel ring inscribed in gilt leters 'ALBERTUS ANIMOSUS' gilt start and scroll below. The reverse circular central in white enamel bears the silver gilt and blue and green enamel crowned arms of Saxony within a blue enamel ring and a gilt star and scroll below.

Hindenburg Cross with Crossed Swords (for combat):
The Honor Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (German: Das Ehrenkreuz des Weltkriegs 1914/1918), commonly, but incorrectly, known as the Hindenburg Cross was established by Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, President of the German Republic, by an order dated 13 July 1934, to commemorate the distinguished deeds of the German people during the First World War. This was Germany's first official service medal for soldiers of Imperial Germany who had taken part in the war, and where they had since died it was also awarded to their surviving next-of-kin. Shortly after its issuance, the government of NSDAP Germany declared the award as the only official service decoration of the First World War and further forbid the continued wearing of German Free Corps awards on any military or paramilitary uniform of a state or NSDAP Party organization.

This is a fantastic example of a scarce medal bar, ready for further research and display.