House Order of the Golden Lion, Type I, Breast Star (in silver and gold)

CATEGORY: Version

SKU: 01.HSK.0101.102.01.001

Estimated market value:

$2,200 USD

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Estimated market value:

$2,200 USD

Attributes

  • Country
    Germany
  • Composition
    Silver/Gold/Enamelled
  • Inscription
    Obv: VIRTUTE ET FIDELITATE
  • Size
    73.5-83mm

Physical Description and Item Details


An eight-sided star, constructed of silver and gold. The rays are generally covered in diamonds, although rare examples without diamonds exist. The medallion’s inscription ring is enameled in carmine and features the golden inscription ‘VIRTUTE ET FIDELITATE’ (‘for virtue and loyalty’), with four dots at the bottom. The centre of the medallion is enameled in blue and features a left-facing lion in silver with several horizontal red-enameled stripes, with a golden crown and golden paws. The reverse is smooth and silver with a vertical pinback.

History


The House Order of the Golden Lion was instituted by Landgraf Friedrich II of Hesse-Kassel and was dedicated to Saint Elisabeth of Hungary, an ancestor of the founder. The order was conferred upon individuals who demonstrated exceptional civil or military merit.

In 1818, Prince-Elector Wilhelm I added three additional grades to the order, and from this point onward, the awards of the order featured his name or initials on the reverse. The classes now were: Grand Cross, I Class Commander, II Class Commander, and Knight Cross. Although the Grand Cross is documented, there is very limited information on it.

On August 20, 1851, the order was again reduced to one class, and the three lower classes were assimilated into the newly established Wilhelm Order.

The House Order of the Golden Lion and the Wilhelm Order feature a very similar obverse and reverse design. The main difference between them is that the lion featured on the obverse of the House Order of the Golden Lion has the back paw held higher than the front paw, while the lion featured on the obverse of the Wilhelm Order has both paws held at the same height.

Following the death of the last prince-elector of Hesse-Kassel, the order was taken over by Grand Duke Ludwig II of Hesse-Darmstadt. On June 6, 1876, the order was given new statutes and was introduced as a Grand Ducal Order.

The Grand Cross of the order was equal to the Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order.

The order became obsolete in 1918, following the abdication of the last Grand Duke of Hesse-Darmstadt.

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