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At the Antiques Roadshow revival, Paul Atterbury is presented with a “truly rare” medal for a bird that survived a World War II plane crash and found it on road pigeons. The bird was affectionately named Colon and awarded the Deakin Medal for bravery. The BBC guest who owned the medal was stunned to learn how much it could sell at auction.
Paul began: “I know you discussed the story of the great dove of Cologne with Fiona [Bruce].
“Firstly, I have never won a medal for digging before, and when you know what happened, what the story was like and how this extraordinary pigeon achieved such extraordinary results to justify a medal, it is very powerful in a way.
“But that’s why, of course, it’s important to remember that the Deakin medal continues to be awarded, because animals still do extraordinary things, as they always have.
He said that another aspect that worries him is that the medal is “very rare” and belongs to “a great period of history.”
This makes the item “very valuable,” Paul told guests eager to find out how much it’s worth.
His guest was speechless, began to smile incredulously and said: “No, not so much. We had no idea it would cost so much.”
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The crowd gathered around Paul chuckled at his joke about the dear bird.
The Deakin Medal was established by Maria Deakin in 1943 to honor animal work during wartime.
It is a bronze medal with the words “For Valor” and “We also serve” engraved inside the wreath.
Attached to a green, brown and blue striped ribbon, the medal was awarded to various animals associated with a branch of the military or civil defense forces.
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Post time: Dec-28-2022