Original Item: One-of-a-kind. This is very nice a 100% genuine parade medal bar removed from a captured German soldier during WWII, and brought home by an American soldier as a war trophy. The medals and ribbons are attached to a very nice metal backing covered with Bourdeaux red felt padding and a nice hinged attachment pin.

The set of 2 medals consists of the following:

- WWII Iron Cross 2nd Class 1939 (Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse, or EKII)
- WWII 1 October 1938 Commemorative Medal - Sudetenland Medal (Czech Conquest)

Iron Cross (Eisernes Kreuz) 2nd Class:
The Iron Cross (Eisernes Kreuz, abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and NSDAP Germany (1933–1945). It was established by King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia in March 1813 backdated to the birthday of his late wife Queen Louise on 10 March 1813 during the Napoleonic Wars (EK 1813). Louise was the first person to receive this decoration (posthumous). The recommissioned Iron Cross was also awarded during the Franco-Prussian War (EK 1870), World War I (EK 1914), and World War II (EK 1939, re-introduced with a swas added in the center).

The Iron Cross was normally a military decoration only, though there were instances of it being awarded to civilians for performing military functions. Two examples of this were civilian test pilots Hanna Reitsch who was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class and 1st Class and Melitta Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg, who was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class, for their actions as pilots during World War II.

Please note 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.

1 October 1938 Commemorative Medal
(German: Die Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 1. Oktober 1938) Commonly known as the Sudetenland Medal, this was a decoration of NSDAP Germany awarded in the interwar period. Instituted on 18 October 1938, the medal was awarded to German military personnel who participated in the occupation of Sudetenland and the occupation of Czechoslovakia in March 1939.

The medal was awarded to all German (and as well Sudeten) State officials and members of the German Wehrmacht and SS who marched into Sudetenland. Later it was awarded to military personnel participating in the occupation of the remnants of Czechoslovakia on 15 March 1939. It was awarded until 31 December 1940. In all 1,162,617 medals and 134,563 bars were awarded.

The medal was similar in appearance as the Anschluss Medal, the reverse only differed in the date. It was designed by Professor Richard Klein.