Historical information

Medal belonged to Joan Grace Gibson (Mitchell) Service numbers: VFX53656 VX53656 VX38752.

The 1939–1945 Star is a military campaign medal instituted by the United Kingdom on 8 July 1943 for award to British and Commonwealth forces for service in the Second World War. The reverse is plain, however Stars issued to Australian personnel typically have recipient names engraved on the reverse.

Significance

The medal is of high significance and should be kept in the collection.

Physical description

Made from yellow copper zinc alloy with somewhat sharp six points. The obverse has a central and textured design of the Royal Cypher 'GRJ VI', surmounted by a crown. A circlet, the top of which is covered by the crown, surrounds the cypher and is inscribed 'THE 1939 - 1945 STAR'. The reverse is engraved with: 'VFX53656 J.G. GIBSON'. The ribbon is tactile with red, navy, green, yellow and light blue stripes. The red edges and blue stripes symbolise engagement levels, while the green and gold centre represents the jungle and beaches. The dark blue, red, and light blue stripes signify equal contributions of the Navy, Army, and Air Force across all fronts. The blue central stripe represents the traditional nurse's uniform, with red stripes signifying the Red Cross and military service. It is worth noting that typically the Pacific Star ribbon would be matched with a medal that also states The Pacific Star. However, this Pacific Star ribbon is matched with a medal that denotes the Second World War 1939-45 Star. [I believe that the ribbon on 202508.259 and 202508.260 have been swapped at some point.].

Inscriptions & markings

'VFX53656 / J.G. GIBSON' [Engraved on reverse of medal]