British WWI Lusitania Sinking Table Medal & Box
This item is listed for historical interest only. It was listed on our site previously but has been sold and is no longer available for purchase.
Sold for: $125.00

Original era manufacture. 55mm cast iron, double sided table medal in its original issue box. This is a British made example of a German made medal, made by Germany to ridicule the British apparent lack of concern regarding passengers traveling on merchant or passenger ships into the German declared War Zone, which then existed around the UK. The obverse of the medal depicts a line of people purchasing ship tickets from a skeleton while another potential passenger reads the German travel warning in a newspaper. A banner above declares "Business Over All" in German. The medal was re-struck by the British in an attempt to portray the Germans as uncaring and boastful regarding the sinking of the Lusitania on May 1 1915.The medal is quite sound with good detail and a nice old patina. The issue box shows typical wear, the lid has torn away from the body. Regardless, due to their fragile nature, the box is a definite plus. RMS Lusitania was a Cunard liner launched in 1907 and was sunk by the German U-Boot U-20 on May 7 1915 off of the Irish Coast. Of the 1,969 souls aboard the ship there were only 764 survivors. A great deal of controversy regarding the sinking of this ship remains today, providing an opportunity for further research.