Honors within the Collection of School Equipment and Paraphernalia

The Collection of School Equipment and Paraphernalia includes more than 250 honors awarded between the 18th and the 21st centuries, classified in four groups: medals, decorations, plaques and ribbons

Honors are visible recognitions awarded for merits or feats achieved in wartime or peacetime, in military or civil service, which the persons awarding them (mostly members of top government) consider deserving of particular distinction. Their meaning is primarily moral and honorary, however, their holders may in some cases obtain direct (benefits, pensions) or indirect (facilitated professional promotion) financial or status gains.*

*(Honors. Croatian Encyclopedia, Online Edition. Miroslav Krleža Institute of Lexicography, 2022. Accessed on 9 October 2022. <http://www.enciklopedija.hr/Natuknica. aspx?ID=44744>.)

  • A medal is normally a circular plaque, typically made of some metal, featuring on one or both sides an embossed image, namely an inscription on the face and an allegorical, historical or symbolic composition on the back.**


  • A higher-ranking medal is referred to as a decoration and its holder is envisaged to belong to an elite group.**


  • A plaque is a small, rectangular or polygonal plate, typically made of metal, featuring an embossed image on one or both sides. Memorials awarded on the occasion of a celebration, anniversary, etc. are referred to as plaques (memorial plaques).**

  • Ribbon is a traditional name for a medal with an eye or clip used to attach the ribbon and is normally of a lower rank than a decoration or medal.**

(**Medal. Croatian Encyclopedia, Online Edition. Miroslav Krleža Institute of Lexicography, 2022. Accessed on 9 October 2022.<http://www.enciklopedija.hr/Natuknica. aspx?ID=39730>.)