Item number: M538-4

Reference number: Borna Barac III#573

Year: AD 1915-1920

Material: Bronze

Provenance: Bertolami Fine Art s.r.l. 2025

This is a miniature version of the Italo-Austrian War Commemorative Medal. Originally instituted in AD 1915, it was awarded to military personnel who participated in the Italo-Austrian War.

The obverse features the left-facing profile portrait of King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy, wearing a helmet modeled after the French Adrian helmet. It is encircled by the Latin inscription “GVERRA / PER L’UNITA / D’ITALIA 1915 / 1918”, meaning “War for the Unity of Italy 1915 1918”, with the text segments separated by oak leaves, symbolizing strength and honour. To the right of the portrait, the initials “S.C.” denote the engraver Silvio Canevari, who was likely the designer of the original medal. Below, the abbreviation “S. J.” indicates that it most probably originated from the “Stabilimento Stefano Johnson” in Milan.

The center of the reverse depicts a standing figure of Victoria, the goddess of victory, held aloft on shields borne by soldiers. Surrounding this scene is the Latin inscription “CONIATA NEL BRONZO NEMICO”, translating to “Mined from enemy bronze”. The ribbon features the green, red, and white tricolour of the Italian national flag, repeated six times in equal-width stripes.

The “Stabilimento Stefano Johnson” was a representative Italian enterprise enjoying international renown in the fields of medal, badge, and coin manufacturing. The firm’s history can be traced back to 18th-century Birmingham, England, where the Johnson family was renowned for producing metal-pressed buttons and badges for court servants’ uniforms, liveries, and military attire. Around AD 1830, family member James Johnson relocated to Milan, introducing this craft to Italy. The company was subsequently inherited by his son, Stefano Johnson, who devoted himself to the workshop’s management and formally named the factory after himself. Although the facility was tragically reduced to ruins during the heavy bombing of Milan in August AD 1943, it was resiliently rebuilt under the stewardship of Stefano Carlo and his son, Cesare Johnson, who had recently returned from a prisoner-of-war camp with a degree in chemistry from the University of Milan. In AD 1958, they opened a modern new factory in Baranzate, a suburb of Milan, and resumed close collaboration with numerous Italian engravers and contemporary artists.

Although Italy was founded in AD 1861 and achieved unification in AD 1870, regions in its northeast under Austrian control, such as Trentino and Trieste, were still inhabited by large numbers of Italians, fostering a strong sentiment for irredentism throughout Italian society. Meanwhile, both nations regarded the Adriatic Sea and the Balkan Peninsula on its opposite shore as vital to their core interests; as the Austro-Hungarian Empire actively expanded into the Balkans, the geostrategic confrontation between the two parties grew increasingly sharp. Although both nations joined the Triple Alliance in AD 1882 and secretly partitioned their spheres of competition in Albania in AD 1913, the alliance fundamentally lacked mutual trust. Italy repeatedly demanded territorial compensation from Austria for its expansion into the Balkans, but these requests were consistently rejected, leading to a rapid deterioration in bilateral relations.

When the First World War broke out in AD 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia without consulting Italy. Italy subsequently declared its neutrality on the grounds that Austria had initiated an act of aggression, which did not align with the defense terms of the alliance. Subsequently, the Allied Powers enticed Italy with the secret signing of the Treaty of London, promising that territories under Austrian control—such as Trentino, South Tyrol, Trieste, the Istrian Peninsula, and Dalmatia—would be ceded to Italy after the war. Amidst a fanatical domestic atmosphere fiercely stoked by extreme nationalists advocating for entry into the war, Italy revoked the Triple Alliance in May AD 1915 and formally declared war on Austria, after which both sides engaged in a prolonged mountain war of attrition along the Alps and the Isonzo River.

During the hostilities, owing to low morale and command issues, the Italian army suffered a crushing defeat against the combined German and Austrian forces at the Battle of Caporetto in AD 1917, resulting in a substantial retreat of their lines. However, at the tail end of the First World War in AD 1918, Italian forces regrouped and launched a counter-offensive, decisively defeating the Austrian army at the Battle of Vittorio Veneto. They successfully expelled the Austrian forces entirely and effectively occupied and controlled disputed areas such as Trentino, Trieste, and the Adriatic coast, forcing the Austro-Hungarian Empire to sign an armistice and surrender.

With the conclusion of the First World War and the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, although Italy successfully reclaimed former Austrian territories such as Trentino and Trieste, the commitments made in the Treaty of London regarding Balkan areas like Dalmatia were not fully honoured at the Paris Peace Conference due to US President Woodrow Wilson’s promotion of national self-determination and opposition from nations such as Britain and France, with most disputed regions assigned to the newly formed Yugoslavia. The severe depletion of the national treasury and acute inflation caused by prolonged warfare against Austria, combined with a profound sense of frustration—termed the “mutilated victory”—stemming from stymied diplomatic expansion, thoroughly eroded the credibility of the liberal government, ultimately laying the groundwork for the rise of Mussolini and the fascist regime.

Victor Emmanuel III (Vittorio Emanuele III) reigned from AD 1900 to 1946. During his tenure, he witnessed the Italo-Turkish War, the First World War, and the post-war social crisis, earning the title “King of Victory” after the AD 1918 triumph. Nevertheless, his decision in AD 1922 not to employ military force against Mussolini’s Blackshirts, allowing the Fascist Party to take over the government, is regarded as a pivotal catalyst enabling the establishment of the fascist dictatorship. During the AD 1930s, he remained the nominal head of state, though actual power was entirely monopolised by Mussolini. Following Italy’s defeat in the Second World War and the rise of the republican movement, he abdicated in AD 1946, went into exile in Egypt, and passed away in Alexandria in AD 1947.

物件編號: M538-4

參考書目編號: Borna Barac III#573

年代: 公元 1915-1920 年

材質: 青銅

來源: Bertolami Fine Art s.r.l. 2025

這是一枚義奧戰爭紀念章的迷你版。最初於公元1915年設立，頒予參與義奧戰爭的軍職人員。

正面為義大利國王伊曼紐三世左側肖像，頭戴仿製法國的阿德里安頭盔。周圍環列拉丁銘文「GVERRA / PER L’UNITA / D’ITALIA 1915 / 1918」，即「義大利統一之戰 1915 1918」，字段間均以橡葉相隔，象徵力量與榮譽。肖像右側「S.C.」標示雕刻家西爾維奥·卡內瓦里（Silvio Canevari），應為原章之設計者。下方縮寫「S. J.」，可知很可能來自米蘭的「斯蒂法諾·強森工廠」（Stabilimento Stefano Johnson）。

背面中央為勝利女神立像，被士兵們所持的盾牌所高舉。周圍環列拉丁銘文「CONIATA NEL BRONZO NEMICO」，即「由繳獲之青銅所造」。綬帶為義大利國旗的綠-紅-白三色，重複六次，色帶均等寬。

「斯蒂法諾·強森工廠」（Stabilimento Stefano Johnson），是一家在獎牌、徽章和硬幣製造領域享有國際盛譽的義大利代表性企業。該工廠的歷史可追溯至18世紀的英國伯明罕，強森家族當時以生產宮廷侍從制服、禮服和軍裝上的金屬壓製鈕扣與徽章聞名。公元1830年左右，家族成員詹姆斯（James Johnson）移居米蘭，並將此工藝帶入義大利，隨後公司由其子斯蒂法諾（Stefano Johnson）繼承，他全心投入工坊經營並以自己的名字正式為工廠命名。該工廠雖然在公元1943年8月的米蘭大轟炸中不幸淪為一片廢墟，但在負責人斯蒂法諾·卡洛（Stefano Carlo）與畢業於米蘭大學化學系、剛從戰俘營歸來的兒子柴薩雷·強森（Cesare Johnson）的堅韌重建下，於公元1958年在米蘭郊區巴蘭扎泰開設了現代化的新工廠，並重啟與諸多義大利雕刻家、當代藝術家的密切合作。

義大利雖於公元1861年建國並於公元1870年完成統一，但位於其東北部、由奧地利控制的特倫蒂諾與的里雅斯特等地區仍居住著大量義大利人，使義大利社會普遍產生收復失地的強烈情緒。同時，兩國皆將亞德里亞海及其對岸的巴爾幹半島視為自身核心利益，隨著奧匈帝國積極向巴爾幹擴張，雙方地緣戰略對立日益尖銳。儘管兩國曾於公元1882年加入三國同盟，且在公元1913年秘密協定劃分阿爾巴尼亞的角逐範圍，但該同盟實質上缺乏互信。義大利一再要求奧國在其向巴爾幹擴張時給予領土補償，卻屢遭拒絕，導致雙方關係急劇惡化。

公元1914年第一次世界大戰爆發時，奧匈帝國在未徵詢義大利的情況下向塞爾維亞宣戰，義大利遂以奧國先發動侵略、不符合同盟防衛條款為由宣告中立。隨後，協約國以秘密簽署的《倫敦協定》為誘餌，許諾戰後將奧地利控制的特倫蒂諾、南蒂羅爾、的里雅斯特、伊斯特拉半島及達爾馬提亞等地劃歸義大利。在國內極端國家主義分子極力鼓吹參戰的狂熱氛圍下，義大利於公元1915年5月廢除三國同盟並正式對奧地利宣戰，雙方隨即沿阿爾卑斯山脈及伊松佐河一帶展開長期的山地拉鋸戰。

戰事期間，義軍因士氣低落與指揮問題，於公元1917年的卡波雷托之役遭德奧聯軍重創慘敗，陣線大幅後撤。然而到了公元1918年一戰尾聲，義軍重振旗鼓發動反攻，在維托里奧·維內托之役大敗奧軍，順利將奧地利軍隊徹底逐出，並實際進駐與控制了特倫蒂諾、的里雅斯特及亞德里亞海沿岸等爭議區域，迫使奧匈帝國停戰投降。

隨著一戰結束與奧匈帝國解體，義大利雖成功收復了特倫蒂諾與的里雅斯特等奧地利舊轄領土，但在巴黎和會中，因美國總統威爾遜提倡民族自決以及英、法等國的阻撓，《倫敦協定》中承諾的達爾馬提亞等巴爾幹區域未能完全兌現，多數爭議地區被劃歸新成立的南斯拉夫。長期對奧作戰造成的國庫透支與嚴重通膨，疊加外交擴張受阻所引發的「殘缺的勝利」之強烈挫折感，徹底打擊了自由派政府的威信，最終為墨索里尼與法西斯政權的崛起埋下伏筆。

維克多·伊曼紐三世(Vittorio Emanuele III)，公元1900至1946年在位。任內歷經義土戰爭、第一次世界大戰與戰後社會危機，並在公元1918年勝利後獲稱「勝利之王」。然而，他在公元1922年選擇不對墨索里尼的黑衫軍採取武力抵制，允許法西斯黨接管政府，被視為法西斯獨裁得以建立的關鍵推手。公元1930年代，他名義上仍是國家元首，但實權被墨索里尼完全壟斷。二戰後隨著義大利戰敗與共和派興起，他於公元1946年退位並流亡埃及，於公元1947年在亞歷山卓逝世。