In the field of military medal collecting sooner than later everyone learns about relic medals. Simply defined a relic medal is one that is made by recycling old metal usually in the form of captured cannons. This means that only winners issue relic medals though there is probably an exception to this rule out there somewhere that I don’t know about. When I started looking around as a young collector I was quickly amazed at how many well known medals are relic medals. The two best known examples are the British Victoria Cross and the United States Medal of Honor. So few of these are awarded that I don’t think they will ever run out of the metal needed to make them with. Others are much more common but just think of how many medals could be made out of just one old bronze cannon. The most common relic medal and one of my favorites would be the German Franco-Prussian War service medal for combatants. Each one of these have the edge inscription “AUS EROBERTEM GESCHUTZ” (with the two little dots above the letter u in the last word) which translates, from captured cannon.. While this was technically a Prussian medal it was awarded nation wide to every combatant regardless of which German state they came from.

Here we have a gold award medal inscribed “U. W. REGIMENTAL PRIZE DRILL” on an otherwise plain cross and wreath shaped medal. The brooch is inscribed with the name “Lee H. Huntley” which presented me with a research challenge. As it turned out Mr. Huntley was University of Wisconsin Class of 1908 and won this military ROTC (then known as the Corps of Cadets) award for drill in 1906. He graduated with a civil engineering degree and never spent day in the military or earned any other military medals. So here we have a single military medal which is also one man’s complete group.