Large circular bronze medal with integral imperial Ethiopian crown suspension; the face with a portrait of Emperor Haile Selassie I in military uniform, circumscribed in Amharic ‘No one can separate’; the reverse with two female figures, one crowned, symbolising Ethiopia and Eritrea embracing and circumscribed in Ge‘ez ‘What nature has bound together’ and ‘This bone is of my bone’ and dated ‘1945’ (1952); diameter 40.93mm (1.61 inches); on original ribbon. Eritrea was joined in federation with Ethiopia after World War II but in 1960 the Eritrean parliament voted unanimously for independence. There followed a long and bitter war for independence that ended only in 1991. Eritrea became independent on 24 May 1993 but war broke out again from 1998 to 2000 and many issues remain unresolved. The medal was awarded in three grades - gold, silver and bronze; the example here is in bronze.
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