IRELAND. MERCHANT MARINE MEDAL 1939-46 (An tSeirbis Muir-Tractala), 2 bars, with its original top suspender, unnamed, as issued. Extremely Fine and virtually as struck, with almost complete original mint lustre, a particularly attractive example of this rare medal.
Eamon O'Toole, in his "Decorations and Medals of Ireland", records a total of 513 Merchant Marine Medals 1939-46 awarded, with just 34 medals being awarded with 2 bars (the scarcest of the medal and no-bar/bar combinations), making this one of the rarest Irish military medals.This medal was also the only WW2 Irish award for service under fire, as Eamon O'Toole remarks, it was "certainly the only one which was earned at considerable risk to life and limb, and in consistently unpleasant and dangerous conditions."
