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1940 DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS, ROYAL MINT CASED

Currency:USD Category:Firearms & Military Start Price:1,500.00 USD Estimated At:3,000.00 - 4,000.00 USD
1940 DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS, ROYAL MINT CASED
1940 DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS, ROYAL MINT CASED
Rare and most desirable cased British Distinguished Flying Cross ("D.F.C."), issued in 1940 and very likely awarded to a pilot or airman who had participated in the decisive Battle of Britain. The cross bears two spread feathered wings, with a roundel at center above laurel leaf wreaths. At the center of the roundel is the RAF monogram surmounted by the Imperial Crown. On the reverse, the cross has an encircled royal cypher above the year "1918", and at bottom the year the award was made, "1940", has also been engraved. A laurel-decorated mounting bar holds the 1 1/4" wide violet and white diagonally-striped ribbon. This example is unattributed, as was often the case, but is of exceptional rarity. Overall there were 20,000 awards of the D.F.C. during the war, but the vast majority of these were issued in 1944-45 for the bomber campaign against Germany. The D.F.C. for 1940 is very rare and seldom seen either as a single medal or in a group. In all, perhaps only 500 of these medals were awarded in 1940, and most were in recognition for gallantry exhibited during the Battle of Britain. Ex: The War Museum.