Lot 597
597
INDIAN ORDER OF MERIT, First Class breast Badge (1939-45 pattern), Military Division, obverse, 'Reward of Gallantry', the reverse officially inscribed, '1st Class Order of Merit', silver, with gold and enamel centre, lacking usual riband buckle, extremely fine and excessively rare
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VA… Read more
INDIAN ORDER OF MERIT, First Class breast Badge (1939-45 pattern), Military Division, obverse, 'Reward of Gallantry', the reverse officially inscribed, '1st Class Order of Merit', silver, with gold and enamel centre, lacking usual riband buckle, extremely fine and excessively rare

Details
INDIAN ORDER OF MERIT, First Class breast Badge (1939-45 pattern), Military Division, obverse, 'Reward of Gallantry', the reverse officially inscribed, '1st Class Order of Merit', silver, with gold and enamel centre, lacking usual riband buckle, extremely fine and excessively rare
Special notice
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 17.5% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

The most limited issue of the Indian Order of Merit was the First Class designation of the 1939-45 War - in the former year the words 'Reward of Gallantry' were adopted on the obverse design. Only two such awards were ever officially gazetted and although it has been suggested that there was provision for some additional awards between 1944-45, when the Order was reduced to a 'Single Class', the fact remains that just a handful of such issues have ever appeared on the market.