Author Topic: The Last Grenadier  (Read 2452 times)

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  • Walther Eberbach.  1916. 

    ・DER・JÜNGSTE・ —— GRENADIER・ (the Last Grenadier - see below).  Cast iron, lightly blackened,  70.0 mm, 93.03 g.  Edge-punched DS 145  18 (indicating [Freunde der] Deutsche Schaumünze medal number 145, [cast number] 18).  Sehr schön - vorzüglich (fine - extremely fine): surface finish somewhat spotted, especially on edge, but without corrosion.  Scarce.

    Obverse: Death portrayed as a skeleton, wearing Iron Cross on breast, advances to left amidst smoke of battle, his left hand raised back overhead preparing to hurl smoking stick-grenade, his right hand behind him holding a second one, three more at his belt; title legend upper edge, separated by figure; artist's signature ・W∙EBERBACH∙ / ∙1916∙ in exergue; artist's monogram interlocked EW lower left; raised rim. 

    Reverse: at center of field within double-lined and decorative circle, a Kugelhandgranate (ball hand-grenade); two-lined legend around center, reading inner legend from bottom (6 o'clock) ●EISERNER・GRUSS・NACH・VIER・FRONTEN (iron greeting to four fronts); outer legend with four names, at top (12o'clock) ∙∙GREY∙∙  —— ∙SALANDRA∙  ——  ∙ISWOLSKI∙  ——  ∙DELCASSE∙; a single dot centered above each name; raised rim with decorative border of "peaks and pearls."
     
    Cf: Frankenhuis, M.  1919(?).  Catalogue of Medals - Medalets and Plaques Relative to the World War 1914 - 1919, p. 184: 1504.

    Cf: Steguweit, W.  1998.  Das Münzkabinett und die Förderung der Medaillenkunst: Künstlerbriefe 1914-1918 Medaillenedition (Das Kabinett 5), p. 100: 25; pl. 5.

    Cf: Klose, Dietrich O. A.  2016.  Europas Verderben 1914 1918: Deutsche und österreichische Medaillen auf den Ersten Weltkrieg,  p 274: 22.21.

    Cf: Lipp, Peter.  2018.  Heilbronn geprägt und gegossen: Stadtgeschichte auf Münzen und Medaillen vom Mittelalter bis heute, p. 186: no. 440.

    The four names on the reverse refer to Edward Grey, British Foreign Secretary, 1905 - 1916; Antonio Salandra, Italian Prime Minister, 1914 - 1916, who concluded the secret Patto di Londra (Pact of London) with Great Britain, ensuring Italy's renunciation of the Triple Alliance and entry into the World War on the side of the Allies; Alexander Petrovich Iswolsky, Imperial Russian Foreign Minister, 1906 - 1910, whose policies led to the Anglo-Russian Entente of 1907, and who served as Ambassador in Paris, 1910 - 1917; and Théophile Delcassé, French Foreign Minister 1898 - 1906, who concluded the Entente Cordiale with Great Britain, served as Ambassador to Russia in 1914, then Minister of War until his retirement in 1915.

    This medal is part of a "Totentanz" series, of which Eberbach completed 12 double-sided round medals cast in blackened iron, with a few of those designs - perhaps post-war issues - in bronze. 

    Although the title of this design, "Der Jüngste Grenadier" is usually translated as "the youngest grenadier," the adjective "jüngst" can also mean "newest," "most recent," or in other contexts "final," "ultimate," "last," e.g. "das Jüngste Gericht" (the Last Judgement).  Thus we are reminded that Death is, here as in so many other cases, not only the newest, but also the ultimate manifestation: the Last Grenadier!
The Last Grenadier
« on: December 21, 2019, 03:37:57 AM »

Walther Eberbach.  1916. 

・DER・JÜNGSTE・ —— GRENADIER・ (the Last Grenadier - see below).  Cast iron, lightly blackened,  70.0 mm, 93.03 g.  Edge-punched DS 145  18 (indicating [Freunde der] Deutsche Schaumünze medal number 145, [cast number] 18).  Sehr schön - vorzüglich (fine - extremely fine): surface finish somewhat spotted, especially on edge, but without corrosion.  Scarce.

Obverse: Death portrayed as a skeleton, wearing Iron Cross on breast, advances to left amidst smoke of battle, his left hand raised back overhead preparing to hurl smoking stick-grenade, his right hand behind him holding a second one, three more at his belt; title legend upper edge, separated by figure; artist's signature ・W∙EBERBACH∙ / ∙1916∙ in exergue; artist's monogram interlocked EW lower left; raised rim. 

Reverse: at center of field within double-lined and decorative circle, a Kugelhandgranate (ball hand-grenade); two-lined legend around center, reading inner legend from bottom (6 o'clock) ●EISERNER・GRUSS・NACH・VIER・FRONTEN (iron greeting to four fronts); outer legend with four names, at top (12o'clock) ∙∙GREY∙∙  —— ∙SALANDRA∙  ——  ∙ISWOLSKI∙  ——  ∙DELCASSE∙; a single dot centered above each name; raised rim with decorative border of "peaks and pearls."
 
Cf: Frankenhuis, M.  1919(?).  Catalogue of Medals - Medalets and Plaques Relative to the World War 1914 - 1919, p. 184: 1504.

Cf: Steguweit, W.  1998.  Das Münzkabinett und die Förderung der Medaillenkunst: Künstlerbriefe 1914-1918 Medaillenedition (Das Kabinett 5), p. 100: 25; pl. 5.

Cf: Klose, Dietrich O. A.  2016.  Europas Verderben 1914 1918: Deutsche und österreichische Medaillen auf den Ersten Weltkrieg,  p 274: 22.21.

Cf: Lipp, Peter.  2018.  Heilbronn geprägt und gegossen: Stadtgeschichte auf Münzen und Medaillen vom Mittelalter bis heute, p. 186: no. 440.

The four names on the reverse refer to Edward Grey, British Foreign Secretary, 1905 - 1916; Antonio Salandra, Italian Prime Minister, 1914 - 1916, who concluded the secret Patto di Londra (Pact of London) with Great Britain, ensuring Italy's renunciation of the Triple Alliance and entry into the World War on the side of the Allies; Alexander Petrovich Iswolsky, Imperial Russian Foreign Minister, 1906 - 1910, whose policies led to the Anglo-Russian Entente of 1907, and who served as Ambassador in Paris, 1910 - 1917; and Théophile Delcassé, French Foreign Minister 1898 - 1906, who concluded the Entente Cordiale with Great Britain, served as Ambassador to Russia in 1914, then Minister of War until his retirement in 1915.

This medal is part of a "Totentanz" series, of which Eberbach completed 12 double-sided round medals cast in blackened iron, with a few of those designs - perhaps post-war issues - in bronze. 

Although the title of this design, "Der Jüngste Grenadier" is usually translated as "the youngest grenadier," the adjective "jüngst" can also mean "newest," "most recent," or in other contexts "final," "ultimate," "last," e.g. "das Jüngste Gericht" (the Last Judgement).  Thus we are reminded that Death is, here as in so many other cases, not only the newest, but also the ultimate manifestation: the Last Grenadier!
« Last Edit: December 21, 2019, 09:42:18 PM by Haarmann »