A rare war medal missing for three years was returned to its owner just in time to appear at a Tauranga antique fair at the weekend.
The medal's owner, Peter Zervos of Ikon Antiques and Militaria, said the unique piece was returned only a week ago after being stolen from a
gun fair in Auckland in 2008.
"It just appeared - a woman tried to sell it to a jeweller, who recognised it because they are so rare. This would be the only one in New Zealand," he said.
The medal was a Distinguished Service Order (DSO) awarded to a Romanian major during World War I.
"It was very rare because usually only British subjects were awarded that," Mr Zervos said.
He found the piece in an antique shop in Bucharest, Romania, about 10 years ago.
The return of the medal was a timely piece of good luck for the antique dealer - his Lyttelton home was "flattened" in the Christchurch earthquake.
Mr Zervos lost many precious possessions, including a grand piano and irreplaceable paintings.
Although his house was red-stickered, he managed to save as many pieces as he could.
But the theft of the medal did not ultimately save it from being lost in the earthquake - it would have been stored in a vault which Mr Zervos was able to retrieve.
The medal, from his private collection, was worth about $5000.
Mr Zervos, who was in Tauranga exhibiting at the 31st annual Rotary Club of Otumoetai annual antique fair, also offered items including war books, pictures, knives and medals.
A variety of antiques went on show at the event at Baycourt Exhibition Space over the weekend, including fine china, linen and lace, crystal items, silverware, jewellery, tools, militaria items, as well as 18th and 19th-century French and English furniture.
Auckland, Waikato and Christchurch dealers attended the fair, which raised money for the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal.
