Did you know? The "L" in MEDALS stands for Library!

I've previously mentioned MEDALS, the Microphalerist Educational Archive and Library of Slabovia, and shown some of the decorations that have been donated to the archive. However, MEDALS is also a library (it's in the title), and over the years we've acquired a few books for said library. Since MEDALS focuses on awards given by micronations, we try to avoid books that focus on particular macro-nations or time periods in history, and actively seek out more general works in the field.

First up is "A Glossary of Terms Used in Phaleristics - The Science, Study, and Collecting of the Insignia of Orders, Decorations, and Medals" by Alexander J. Laslo (Dorado Publishing, 1995). This slim volume (running just 58 pages plus an eight-page introduction) is largely devoted to, well, exactly what the title says. It's a glossary of terms such as "Accolated" (meaning the design has two heads, both facing the same direction), piefort ("a numismatic item struck on a planchet twice or more the normal thickness"), and saltire (describing when two objects cross to form an "X", such as the staffs of two flags).

Next we have "Collecting Medals and Decorations, Third Edition" by Alec A. Purves (Robert Stockwell Ltd., 1978) - the photo below has been edited slightly to remove the identifying label of the previous owner, this is the ugly white square in the top right corner. This volume runs to nearly 240 pages, and is much more comprehensive and informative than the slim volume by Laslo (1995), although it also includes a lot of information specific to British awards.

Finally, somewhere around here I have a copy of "Collecting Military Medals: A Beginner's Guide" by Colin Narbeth (Lutterworth Press, 2002), although I have to confess I've misplaced it at the moment... (The picture below is taken from the Amazon website.) When I find it, I'll post a summary of it here.

MEDALS currently publishes several pamphlets on different aspects of micronational awards; perhaps one day we will publish our own book as a guide to others!