RARE ETHIOPIA KOREAN WAR MEDAL MADE IN SWEDEN

Large silver trilobe medal with integral imperial Ethiopian crown suspension; the face with the left and right lobes each bearing a rayed Trinity cross, the lower lobe with the Lion of Judah above an Amharic inscription in Ge’ez, a plaque with a portrait of Emperor Haile Selassie I imposed centrally; the reverse with an Amharic inscription in Ge’ez and dated ‘1943’ (1950); signed on the edge of the base ‘C.C.SPORRONG&Co SWEDEN’; the medal 70.15mm high by 52.4mm wide (2.76 inches by 2.06 inches), weight 43.68 grams (1.54 oz); age toning, slight scratches at the base of the reverse; on original ribbon. When the Korean War broke out in 1950, Emperor Haile Selassie I raised a volunteer battalion from the Imperial Bodyguard for deployment under United Nations auspices. The force was named the Kagnew Battalion and fought alongside the United States Seventh Division. Between 1951 and 1954, three Ethiopian battalions (some 5,000 men in all) fought with distinction in Korea. An impressive and rare award of striking design.