| La turga del sultano è un incrocio artistico-calligrafico che mette in difficoltà anche un madrelingua. Si leggerebbe (chi ce la fa) da dx in basso a sx in alto.
Se dovessi scommettere sarebbe su Abdülaziz I lo sfortunato, perchè regnante nel periodo 1861-1876 che potrebbe corrispondere all'attività del Pulcher a Istambul (avrebbe avuto da 24 a 39 anni) visto che il Pulcher negli anni 80 è presente a Trieste dove sembra poi restare.
Murad V regna solo tre mesi e per questo lo escluderei, poi arriva Abdülhamid II 1876-1909, ma la turga è piuttosto diversa da quella presente sulla medaglia.
Il motto circolare è "zelo - devozione- fedeltà" come si evince da quanto riporto qua sotto, è in inglese e viene da un sito non più operativo (nome originale "turkishmedals.net"). Dà comunque particolari interessanti per la datazione del pezzo (numero componenti per la medaglia, piattezza o maggior tridimensionalità per la placca da portare al petto etc)
Mejidie Order (Mecidi Nishani) - Established in 1852 by Sultan Abdulmejid I, this order became the quintessential decoration of the Ottoman Empire. The order came in five classes, with the highest class limited to 50 members, and the lowest class limited to 6,000. This limitation did not apply to foreign recipients, however, and many examples were awarded to foreign diplomats, heads of state, and British, French, and German military personnel. The Mejidie order could be awarded to women.
During the First World War, awards for distinction in military operations could be made with crossed sabers. This was an augmentation to the existing classes of the awards, and could be conferred on those who already held the order in the same class. It is estimated that only about 5% of awards from that time period were with sabers.
Badge: Seven-pointed star in silver, with a gold central medallion, around which is a red enameled band bearing four plaques with the words "Zeal, Devotion, Loyalty" and the year AH 1268 (1852) on the bottom plaque. Between each ray of the star are small crescents and stars. The badges of the order are suspended from a red enameled crescent and star device. The breast star resembles the badge of the order, except that the rays of the stars are in two layers, with the crescents and stars superimposed on top of the lower layer. Examples of the highest class are sometimes seen set with rose-cut diamonds or "pastes", which represents an augmentation of the first class. Original awards would have had real diamonds, but over time many of these have had the diamonds replaced with glass pastes.
Early examples from the Crimean war period are usually more desirable to collectors, especially in the higher classes. Badges of that period are distinguished by two piece construction, with a hollow convex back plate, and by a round ring at the top of the badge connecting it to the suspension piece, rather than a square ring found on later pieces. Early breast stars are somewhat more "flat" looking in appearance, with lower relief in the faceted rays of the star, and have loops on the back to allow them to be sewn onto the uniform, rather than a hinged pin. Later examples had a slightly concave back, usually with the Ottoman Mint hallmark, and a square loop at the top of the badge.
Ribbon: Bright red with narrow green stripes inset from each edge. Ribbons of early badges have been seen in a dark scarlet shade, with pale olive edges (not inset), but the date of transition to bright red is not known. It is possible that the ribbon evolved over time, becoming brighter red with darker green stripes, which were inset on later ribbons.
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Ordini Cavallereschi Italiani e Stranieri
