WW1 medals on Ebay

[yellow]

I would disagree with the dealer not checking if medals are casualties or not as its so quick and simple to do so , back in the day it took a letter to Wargraves and await reply or checking the old soldiers died books , or if lucky the group came with a plaque or scroll , now you are one click away even standing at a boot fair with a smart phone .

What dealers did do who issued catalogs was to put in a couple of sleepers so to get people buying the list and hoping they were the successful phone all.

So the average price for a pair now ? £40 + but its not just first day of the Somme that can command a fair price , lots of other interesting actions collected ,and as to the groceries quote some people work all day and their wage does not cover a grocery bill .

What does tend to happen if you stick out 12 catalogs a year and people are paying for the subscription then you need new stock on a regular basis and that's why dealers are sometimes in the position to have to purchase stock with a very small profit margin to put in their next catalogue ,have seen this at medal fairs with dealers buying stock to put in a catalogue which was going to print that week .

Even though the information is at your finger tips, does everyone have the time to sit there and check the hundreds of listing each week for every ww1 single on eBay? I am doubtful of this. Even if a dealer were to discover a medal to be listed with out casualty information, with postage and time in re-listing the medal most of the profit margin has gone. Also only in very rare instances do I see single WW1 medals being listed by the larger medal focused auction houses. If there were a great demand and lotsof profit to be made I am sure the most knowledgeable auctioneer/valuers would of taken to selling WW1 singles in quantity. Good point about the dealers lists, with out putting a class bracket around a collector, is it the Ww1 pair and single medal collectors keeping the business of catalogues afloat for dealers? I would of thought it would of been quality rather than quantity that does that.

[Guest exuser1]

Even though the information is at your finger tips, does everyone have the time to sit there and check the hundreds of listing each week for every ww1 single on eBay? I am doubtful of this. Even if a dealer were to discover a medal to be listed with out casualty information, with postage and time in re-listing the medal most of the profit margin has gone. Also only in very rare instances do I see single WW1 medals being listed by the larger medal focused auction houses. If there were a great demand and lotsof profit to be made I am sure the most knowledgeable auctioneer/valuers would of taken to selling WW1 singles in quantity. Good point about the dealers lists, with out putting a class bracket around a collector, is it the Ww1 pair and single medal collectors keeping the business of catalogues afloat for dealers? I would of thought it would of been quality rather than quantity that does that.

Good point on the quality or quantity keeping dealers going as I see many trios and pairs going back in to dealers boxes at the end of fairs and the outstanding stuff does seem to go very quick though there can be exceptions , some dealers have told me that the bottom end of the market is pretty stagnant some price driven where collectors have dug in their toes and not paid what's being asked for basic trios or pairs , and now many dealers are no longer issuing catalogues but putting them on their websites which I feel is a shame as it was quite fun waiting for the latest then going through the sections and on to the phone hoping still there , but I understand the way the postal system has changed has not helped , I can recall not long ago auction houses selling plaques by the box 20/30 in each !

[BRONNO]

Medals often bring back bad and sad memories and when our 'leaders' later treat us like s***, we see the medals and service as worthless.

Steve M

Mmmmm, I wonder if Fred Greaves would agree with you!!!!! BRONNO.

[Guest exuser1]

Have always believed medals would have given the whole spectrum of emotions from sorrow ,through to anger and pride , from the soldiers who wore them to the relatives who were given them when the lads had failed to return home , but back to prices achieved on auction sites as we all know you only need 2 bidders to drive the price wild , I stood behind a very well known dealer a few years ago at a small local auction the group 1915 trio, long runner and DCM to a reasonable line regiment with a bit of paperwork , had chatted with him previous and he said he would have a punt and go for around X amount in the end he paid at least 3 times what he had said and would just mumble "What have I done ,what have I done!" he walked out of the auction and spent next 2 hours wandering around the town mumbling to himself ! chatted to him later over a pint and he said just got lost in the battle for the stuff , I did not like the other bloke bidding and just kept me had up ! seller was very very happy !

[yellow]

Have always believed medals would have given the whole spectrum of emotions from sorrow ,through to anger and pride , from the soldiers who wore them to the relatives who were given them when the lads had failed to return home , but back to prices achieved on auction sites as we all know you only need 2 bidders to drive the price wild , I stood behind a very well known dealer a few years ago at a small local auction the group 1915 trio, long runner and DCM to a reasonable line regiment with a bit of paperwork , had chatted with him previous and he said he would have a punt and go for around X amount in the end he paid at least 3 times what he had said and would just mumble "What have I done ,what have I done!" he walked out of the auction and spent next 2 hours wandering around the town mumbling to himself ! chatted to him later over a pint and he said just got lost in the battle for the stuff , I did not like the other bloke bidding and just kept me had up ! seller was very very happy !

Its called auction fever, as a professional one must always exercise restraint. A few years ago I was bidding on a split 15 star trio just the pair to a Lt in the MGC. I left the bidding at 250 and the price kept going up to 300. The reason was because there has been a local press release about this WW1 pair......nothing special, just captured during the Spring Offensive and commissioned from the Lincs Reg. It was sad that I couldn't buy the medals to one of the few WW1 vets I had actually met but I exercised restraint knowing that I could buy the same medals from London for no more than 125 pounds to any other MGC officer. Some chap who I had never seen before bought them and I don't know what became of the medals. Would of been nice to reunite with the postcards the vet gave me. That was one expensive broken group to the MGC! there is a lot to be said for time invested in marketing.

[stevem49]

Mmmmm, I wonder if Fred Greaves would agree with you!!!!! BRONNO.

'Perhaps it is better that all those places are forgot, and we thank God that we got away safe and are able to pray for those, our friends and mates, who never returned'

Fred Greaves VC circa 1920

Fred would never return to France/Belgium or for that matter Gallipoli, despite being asked on a number of occasions.

He did though enjoy his visits to Buck House as did Hazel.

VC winners are rarely if ever treated like s

Steve M

[Guest exuser1]

Its called auction fever, as a professional one must always exercise restraint. A few years ago I was bidding on a split 15 star trio just the pair to a Lt in the MGC. I left the bidding at 250 and the price kept going up to 300. The reason was because there has been a local press release about this WW1 pair......nothing special, just captured during the Spring Offensive and commissioned from the Lincs Reg. It was sad that I couldn't buy the medals to one of the few WW1 vets I had actually met but I exercised restraint knowing that I could buy the same medals from London for no more than 125 pounds to any other MGC officer. Some chap who I had never seen before bought them and I don't know what became of the medals. Would of been nice to reunite with the postcards the vet gave me. That was one expensive broken group to the MGC! there is a lot to be said for time invested in marketing.

Have caught that on more than one occasion ,but not to painfully !

I recall a auction house in South Wales back in the late 1990s had a pair with a bit of ordinary paperwork ,the story was run in a antiques magazine prior to the auction ,it stated the bloke had been buried alive by shell fire,uncovered again by the Jerries who miss took him for dead reburied him and he then escaped ! I rang the auctioneer and said its an incredible story any confirmation ? Oh no he replies ,it's what the grand son told me ! the pair was ASC , the hammer price was over £1200 ! some one must be still feeling very sorry for them selves even 20 years on

[yellow]

Have caught that on more than one occasion ,but not to painfully !

I recall a auction house in South Wales back in the late 1990s had a pair with a bit of ordinary paperwork ,the story was run in a antiques magazine prior to the auction ,it stated the bloke had been buried alive by shell fire,uncovered again by the Jerries who miss took him for dead reburied him and he then escaped ! I rang the auctioneer and said its an incredible story any confirmation ? Oh no he replies ,it's what the grand son told me ! the pair was ASC , the hammer price was over £1200 ! some one must be still feeling very sorry for them selves even 20 years on

10 years ago that money would of bought a confirmed WW2 escapers gallantry award, a far better investment. A classic case of buying the story and not the medals. The respected collectors on this forum only buy items confirmed in official archives.

[rflory]

ALCTAy wrote:

I've also heard a few people suggest that all medals not in the original family should be donated to museums...

The 'few people' whom made that suggestion have obviously not visited many museums as most of them, especially regimental ones, have the money and/or space to exhibit only a small portion of the medals they now hold.

[Guest exuser1]

ALCTAy wrote:

The 'few people' whom made that suggestion have obviously not visited many museums as most of them, especially regimental ones, have the money and/or space to exhibit only a small portion of the medals they now hold.

Quite correct and unfortunate though it is a few go missing ,are lost or has happened in the past when the regimental museum closes are in various ways back on the open market or mislaid or even thrown away which happened in North London a few years ago

[fjwiltshire]

My nephew and I recently paid a handsome price on Ebay for the medals of 3 of the 4 uncles of mine who fought in WW1. I have no feelings, good or bad, for the family member, whom I've never met, whose branch of the family was entrusted with their safe keeping. She can pay her electric bill, fix her roof or dash off for a month in Benidorm at our expense without guilt. The cost was high but affordable thanks to the strong(at the time) Aussie dollar against the pound. The important thing is the medals stay in the family and I hope our young will pass the stories on and they never go on the market again. That said, the comments regarding the actual soldiers not wanting reminders of their experiences have affected me, especially the man whose bren gun crew were reduced to soap by a flamethrower. A very powerful reminder of the horrors they endured.

[beestonboxer]

some time ago and very easily i contacted someone regarding some medals that belonged to a member of his family in the hope i might be able to find out more information regarding the recipient my intention wasnt to give or sell the medals to the family although if i did eventually want to sell them i would have offered them to the family first, the Gentleman did mention if i ever wanted to sell them he would be interested but at no time did i show any interest in selling or ever mention any values , but to be honest the Gentleman ( Grandson of recipient ) who at first seemed very interested in the fact that the medals had come to light and who said he would delve in to various paperwork that remained in the family i havent heard anything from him for about six months or more......... so maybe he has had second thoughts about trusting someone who has contacted him out of the blue which i can understand or he really isnt that interested in his familys military past ( there is obviously one other reason he may not have contacted me ...........) . Think we have to remember not everyone out there is so keen on this subject as we all are the medals which belonged to the Gentleman had through no fault of his direct family members been out of the family for several years mid 1950s and at some point had probably been in an auction if there was a family interest could the medals have been found by the family earlier ? I know the Grandson owes me nothing but i have to say i am dissapointed not to have heard from him for such a long time, it has made me question how far do you take your research? do you contact family members if you have no intentions of selling ? and should anyone outside of the family try to reunite medals and the like ?

I certainly would have second thoughts about contacting family members again for whatever reason . Me personally would love to hear from the person who somewhere out there has William Henry Griffins war medals or death plaque H.M.S Invincible Jutland 1916.

[Tretten]

Checking for casualties is part of the hobby (or business) and potential bidders will almost certainly refer to the CWGC site and other relevant sources in order to ascertain a spending limit on their bids.

On the other hand, it is often a good pointer to watch other bidders who are taking medals out of the range of the average survivor valuation which can then prompt us to find out why.

[Guest exuser1]

As to the above I recently watched a basic pair to the RA ,junior officer who sees a bit of action late 1918 , I checked him out the net and he came up as the editor of a 1930s home decorating magazine Ideal Homes , so thought ok may be a bit more interesting , but the granddaughter who runs a web page dedicated to her grandfather was aware of the sale , the bidding went, and went and went to a laughable amount, now I know it's her relative and I would pay over the odds for my missing grandads 1914 trio to the 4th Hussars but it does get to a point when you must think ok I will let this one go ?

[Bilco]

I recently visited the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge to look at their collection of Victory medals - part of the Lester Watson Collection of medals that was bequeathed to the Museum. According to their records, Lester Watson collected all the Victory medals by 1928. Some are Reproductions - ie made for collectors - and some are originals, Official or Unofficial. The British Victory medal in the collection has the name of the recipient erased, so presumably people were selling their medals within 10 years of the end of WW1.

When I started collecting medals in the early 1960s Victory medals cost 2/6 in 'junk' shops!

Bill

[Guest exuser1]

I recently visited the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge to look at their collection of Victory medals - part of the Lester Watson Collection of medals that was bequeathed to the Museum. According to their records, Lester Watson collected all the Victory medals by 1928. Some are Reproductions - ie made for collectors - and some are originals, Official or Unofficial. The British Victory medal in the collection has the name of the recipient erased, so presumably people were selling their medals within 10 years of the end of WW1.

When I started collecting medals in the early 1960s Victory medals cost 2/6 in 'junk' shops!

Bill

There has always been a element of old soldiers flogging off their medals pretty quick for all sorts of reasons in the book Chats on Military Curios published in 1915 the author mentions Queens South Africa's being sold behind Waterloo Station by soldiers to collectors and fetching £30 just after they were issued! Also in 1914 the lanes behind the station had a thriving market in German war souvenirs !

[kingsnorth36]

this is a great topic and one which covers a lot of ground, I collect WW1 Officer Casualty medal groups and the market is strong, mainly because that there is more research material to be found making research more possible and lack of supply, just not the same numbers coming to the market. The long and short of it is that more and more collectors such as myself decide to collect anything related to medals then in time narrow their fields. I used to collect RFC only before widening out my area. Top prices are still being paid for Tank Corps, Royal Flying Corps and Tunnellers. I dont think that there will be a huge dip but there will be a surge in WW2 interest as more research material becomes available, ill preface that by adding groups with a named medal and (100% correct) as we all know many are manipulated with photos appearing to add interest in some cases.

Im always guilty of buying the story and will always pay over the odds for a group that has cast iron ephemera and im not ashamed to say that some of the groups in my collection have actually reduced me to tears (and not just the cost).

[Guest exuser1]

As for the above must agree ,have collected across the board and if with ephemera have been prepared to pay over the odds , on the WW2 stuff I tend to agree with what you say ,but for many years we seem to be waiting for more records to be released from the PRO so we can all look for those Dunkirk ,D Day groups ,airborne and such forth ,every so often a crumb is dropped but surely the records must be released soon ?

[Tinhat47]

Depressing! I have the BWM to a Pnr. Alexander Hamilton, an 18-year-old butcher's assistant from Glasgow who went over with the 59th Field Coy., R.E. in August 1914 and was killed in February 1915. His other two medals came up for sale on eBay and I got in a big war with another bidder (probably just another re-seller and not a collector, as he was currently bidding on 34 medals this week.) Either way, he just sniped me at the last moment. Pnr. Hamilton's trio remain separated.

[pylon1357]

Depressing! I have the BWM to a Pnr. Alexander Hamilton, an 18-year-old butcher's assistant from Glasgow who went over with the 59th Field Coy., R.E. in August 1914 and was killed in February 1915. His other two medals came up for sale on eBay and I got in a big war with another bidder (probably just another re-seller and not a collector, as he was currently bidding on 34 medals this week.) Either way, he just sniped me at the last moment. Pnr. Hamilton's trio remain separated.

I would recommend contacting the seller, explaining you have the BWM and asking him to pass along your information to the winner. I would expect this could result in a reunite.

[Tinhat47]

That's a good idea. Having them reunited, no matter who is the owner, is the most important thing.

[Coldstreamer]

Interesting thread

Reunites can be expensive but it can work the other way as a broken group will put some people off bidding

It all comes down to money. Yes I would pay over the odds to get a reunite or a family medal , but I would sell my relatives medals if offered a stupid price (ie 50 000 not 1000) as I know grand father would say I was a silly bigger not to take the money !!! If you have millions you won't be missing this much

[Coldstreamer]

And with streamlining my collection I have found the lower end priced medals sell better than those over £100

[garfyboy]

For me its the story behind the medals everytime, i love to find service/pension records with info on wounds etc, i just purchased a pair to RGA, after research he was gassed in 1917, two weeks later shell/shrap wound and also found his brother was KIA also in 1917.

I know artillery medals are less interesting for most, but a nice little bit of history for ..... £32 on ebay, thats barely a meal for two!!

[tsahal]

talking of expensive ww1 memorabilia....

http://www.ebay.com/itm/British-WWI-Gilt-Field-Marshal-Baton-of-Sir-Edmund-Allenby-Viscount-of-Megiddo-/290827913513?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43b6b1c929