I would bet my bottom dollar on a medal. I love this because back in my Army days I sat on the stone wall across from Heidelberg castle which I am quite confident is what this image portrays. Very cool medal.
I would call it a Medal. One way that is a good way to tell is the Alignment of the Medal. If is Right-Side-Up on both sides when you flip it over like turning a book page, then that is "Medal Alignment". "Coin Alignment" is when the coin is Upside-Down when you turn it like a book page. (Tried to make it simple... not sure if that worked.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin_orientation
A medallion of 1936, (Nazi) Germany. The LZ 127 Zeppelin, created by Count Zeppelin, was operated commercially, for passengers, from 1928 to 1937.It was the first commercial transatlantic flight service in the world. For 5 years it flew between Germany and South America. Some of you will have heard of the Hindenburg disaster in New Jersey, US, in 1937, which probably spelt the approaching end of these hydrogen-filled airships. - The Zeppelin was scrapped for fighter planes in 1940. Wasn't it also involved in bombing raids on Britain, and perhaps elsewhere ?
The two pictured Zeppelins, Hindenburg (top) and Graf, were used for Nazi propaganda flights in 1936 - they bore prominent swastikas on the tail fins & flew over the Olympics and other events, dropping leaflets to the crowds below - maybe this medal commemorates one of those flights
Right, a medal, but the city view side features Frankfurt. The piece commemorates the opening of Frankfurt airport by the way. Initially it was meant to be the home base of some major zeppelin fleet ... Christian
Does not really work as German coins have always (?) been made in what Americans call medal alignment. In fact, these days the US is pretty much the only country where that "coin" orientation is used for coins. Christian
1936. This year saw a new German Zeppelin. A Zeppelin flew over Manhattan, New York. The Berlin Olympics. Were any of these events connected with the commemorative medallion ?
See my earlier reply (#8). FRA airport was inaugurated on 8 July 1936, the date mentioned on the medal. The other side shows the Main river and Frankfurt's old town, with the Alte Brücke across the river and the cathedral tower in the middle. Christian
Having got round to examining one of 3 splendid coins - awarded to me at the Giveaway, here's some very brief details of a 1953 Commemorative issue for the 50th Anniversary of the Republic of Panama. A Spanish conquistador is depicted on the 1/2 Bilboa. He was Vasco Nunez de Balboa, famed as"hero" explorer, shipbuilder ?, governor and gold-plunderer. He did have certain humanitarian policies, regarding the natives, but was also extremely severe, dealing with cannibals and violent tribes. An engraving in New York Public Library shows Balboa setting his dogs to feed upon indigenous practitioners of homosexuality (1594). He got in trouble towards the end of his life, which involved some personal rivalry, and was beheaded. A statue of Balboa is in Madrid. Streets, metro stations, and parks etc. have been named after him, not to mention Panamanian coins. Plenty of info can be found online, unless you prefer reading books about him, mostly in Spanish. - With many thanks to the Giveaway team !
You are correct... Except that German (or any modern) Coins are pretty distinguishable from something that you are trying to decide whether it is a Coin or Medal. Coins also generally have a Date and Denomination, but not always.
Briefly checked the history behind the zeppelins in Frankfurt. The first airport in that city, also for zeppelins, opened in 1912. It was located where the Rebstockpark and Zeppelinpark are today. In the early 1930s the city planned a new bigger airport further south - plans that the nazi government later adopted and realized. FRA was the home base of the two biggest zeppelins LZ 127 (Graf Zeppelin) and LZ 129 (Hindenburg). These two are depicted on the medal. The latter exploded in Lakehurst in 1937; in 1940 the era of the (rigid) zeppelins came to an end. The medal was designed by Adolf Jäger, a Frankfurt based sculptor. Around here he is somewhat famous by the way as he also designed the first coins from this country (Federal Republic of Germany), initially issued by the central bank of the Western occupation zones, then a few months later by the Federal Republic. Christian
