Images(2)

Medal, Commemorative

Object number2015.42.25

Date1939-1941

OriginGermany

MediumBronze/Metal/Fabric

Credit LineGift of Susan Muir

DescriptionGerman West Wall commemorative military medal. Top section is fabric ribbon with vertical gold and white stripes; the ribbon is folded over in half and has a bronze-toned safety pin on the back. Suspended from the bottom of the ribbon is a bronze ring with oval medal below. Front of medal has relief of the German Eagle (an eagle with outstretched wings holding a wreath with a swastika at its center in its talons); below the eagle is a crossed shovel and sword; and at the bottom is a wall or bunker. Front and back have the same leaf pattern around the perimeter.Dimensions3.813 x 1.313 x 0.313 in. (9.7 x 3.3 x 0.8 cm)
InscriptionsBack has raised German text "FUR / ARBEIT / ZUM / SCHUTZE / DEUTSCH / LANDS".
Translation:
"FUR ARBEIT ZUM SCHUTZE DEUTSCH LANDS" = For Work to Protect German Lands or For Work for the Protection of Germany.
Historical NotesThe West Wall Medal (German: Deutsches Schutzwall-Ehrenzeichen) was a military decoration of Nazi Germany. It was instituted on 2 August 1939 and was given to those who designed and built the fortifications on Germany's western borders, known as the West Wall or, in English, the Siegfried Line, and to the troops who served there prior to May 1940. In 1944, as Germany was expecting the arrival of the allied invasion, it was again awarded to those who took part in the fortification of the western borders. In all 622,064 medals were awarded by the end of the war. Part of a collection of WWII-related artifacts from the military service of Gabe Torisky of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who served with the 99th “Checkerboard” Infantry Division during the Ardennes campaign in Belgium. Martin Gabriel "Gabe" Torisky was of Slovak ancestry and was born on November 11, 1911, in Uniontown, PA. He moved to Pittsburgh in the 1920s and was drafted and sent to 99th Division during World War II. The 99th Division is especially important in relation to Pittsburgh, as the Division was originally headquartered in the city in 1942, and the unit insignia, a black shield with a checkerboard band of nine alternating white and blue squares (for “99”) was derived from the coat of arms for William Pitt and thus, also the city seal of Pittsburgh, on which the checkerboard also appears. Donor Susan Muir is Gabe Torisky's daughter.

Previous owner Martin Gabriel Torisky (born 1911)

Related institution 99th Infantry Division

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