Existing comment:
Karl Goetz' Lusitania Medallion
1915
This German medal hails the sinking of RMS Lusitania by the German submarine U-20 on 7 May 1915. On the obverse, under the inscription, "No Contraband" (Keine Bannware), the ship's decks are incorrectly depicted carrying aircraft that made Lusitania a legitimate target. On the reverse, death sells tickets to passengers under the words: "Business Above All" (Geschaft uber alles).
The designer, Karl Goetz, made several hundred copies of the medal with the incorrect date of 5 May before re-striking it with the correct date of 7 May (Mai). Citing the discrepancy between the two dates as proof of the attack was pre-planned, English authorities produced 250,000 copies of Goetz' first medal and used them as propaganda to highlight the inhumanity of the Germans. |