Miniature silver-gilt and red and white enamel cross on elaborate suspension of Inca design with sliver-hallmarked suspension ring; the face with a silver-gilt portrait in relief of Simón Bolívar on a white enamel medallion on the red enamel upright arm of the cross inscribed ‘REP / DEL / PERU’ supported by a circular white enamel ring bearing a gilt laurel wreath, Peruvian red and white enamel flags between the upper arms of the cross which extends at the top in fan shape; the reverse plain; height excluding suspension ring 26.48mm (1.04 inches), width 10.85mm (0.42 inch); some wear to gilding and white enamel; on replaced correct ribbon. The Order was instituted on 30 November 1944 and may be awarded to members of the military, the Civil Guard and the Republican Guard for distinguished service in positions of command or for long and distinguished service. The battle of Ayacucho took place on 9 December 1824 and ended with victory for Republican forces, the capture of the Spanish Viceroy and the defeat of the last sizeable Royalist force on the continent. Simón Bolívar in the north and José de San Martín in the south were the leading figures of the South American revolt against colonial Spanish rule and are widely revered to this day as the liberators of South America. This example came from the workshops of De Greef of Brussels and probably dates from the early 1950s. The order is rare in miniature.
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