The Zeppelin — The German Rigid Airship
GERMANY. Ferdinand Adolf Heinrich August Graf von Zeppelin, general and aircraft manufacturer. 1838-1917. AR Medal (36mm, 19.21 g, 12h). Commemorating the Christening of the Dirigible
Z 127 on the Inventor’s 90th Birthday. By K. Goetz. Dated 8 July 1928. TAVFE DES · Z 127 · AM 90 · GEBVRTSTAG/8 · JULI 1928, bust facing slightly right / GLVCK AB GRAF ZEPPELIN (
good fortune from Count Zeppelin), coat-of-arms surmounted by crested helmet and with two children holding balloons as supporters; zeppelin in background. Edge: BEYER, HAUPTMÜNZAMT · FEINSILBER. Kienast 408 var. (cast bronze and struck gold); Kaiser 478. EF, darkly toned.
Ferdinand von Zeppelin observed the transportation of mail by balloon by both the Union army in the American Civil War and the French army in the Franco-Prussian War. Following the latter conflict, he wrote of his interest in dirigibles in 1874, and began to pursue the project in 1890, the first flight of a Zeppelin occurring ten years later. Despite some financial setbacks, the project gained the interest of both airlines and the German army and navy. During World War I, Zeppelins were used by the Germans for bombing purposes with successful results.
