PRE WW1 BRITISH ARMY MILITARY MEDAL INDIA GENERAL SERVICE MEDAL 1895 TO 1902

36mm wide circular silver medal with ornate scrolled swivel ribbon suspension bar with ‘PUNJAB FRONTIER 1897-98’ and ‘MALAKAND 1897’ clasps; the face with the crowned veiled head of Queen Victoria facing left, circumscribed ‘VICTORIA REGINA ET IMPERATRIX’ (Victoria Queen and Empress) and signed ‘T.B. (for the sculptor Sir Thomas Brock KCB, RA, 1847-1922 whose most famous works include the statue of Prince Albert for the Albert Memorial at Kensington and the Imperial Memorial to Queen Victoria in front of Buckingham Palace); the reverse with the full-length figures of British and Indian soldiers holding a standard, circumscribed ‘INDIA’ to the left and ‘1895’ to the right; attributed on the edge 500 SEPOY PANTAP SINGH, 38TH BN. INFY on correct ribbon. (Note the rare campaign bar Malakand). The medal was instituted in 1896 and replaced the existing India General Service Medal which had been in use since 1854. Like its predecessor, it was awarded for minor actions where no specific campaign medal was created.