There are stories behind every military medal. Many are proof of battle, evidence of service in a theatre of war.
"It means somebody was shooting at you," said Maj. Derek Brown, the director of the Ashton Garrison Museum, which has the world's most complete collection of peacekeeping medals. "These are not grace and favour medals. These are medals for combat service."
Some medals, like the Kuwaiti peacekeeping award presented to Canadians who fought in the first Gulf War, have stranger stories than others.
An original batch of 4,000 medals disappeared after they were presented to the Canadian embassy in Kuwait in 1993. There's no official record of what happened to the medals, though some have reportedly appeared for sale on eBay.
At the time, the Canadian government refused to allow veterans to wear the medals though the current administration has changed its tune. Canadians who served during the first Gulf War can now display the Kuwait medal, which is worn after medals presented by Canada or its immediate allies.
The first of the new medals was presented March 29, with a copy going almost immediately to the Ashton museum on Vanalman Avenue in Saanich.
"It's very significant that the (Kuwaiti) ambassador would know about us," Brown said, explaining that it's unusual for a museum to get a medal at the same time it's presented to veterans who earned the honour.
The Ashton museum's main feature is the Peacekeepers Corridor, a 60-foot display that runs the length of a second-storey wall. Behind the glass panels are exhibits that reveal the time line of peacekeeping efforts since the concept was born in the years after the Second World War. Museum visitors can view authentic weapons, uniforms and armaments used in tumultuous regions that needed an outside force to keep the peace.
The Kuwaiti medal joins a consumate collection of 90 unique medals awarded to soldiers who took part in peacekeeping missions under the auspices of the United Nations, NATO or with a coalition of countries.
"(The complete collection) is the only one in the world and I now know why - it's so difficult to create," Brown said.
Maintaining the collection was actually easier before 1992, a turning point for trouble in the world and the beginning of a rapid-fire succession of new missions. The Middle East, Africa and Eastern Europe were speckled by outbreaks of civil war and tribal violence that demanded action from global alliances such as NATO and the UN.
The highlight comes at the end of the corridor, where there's a collection of eight authentic medals awarded to the solider who would go on to become the father of peacekeeping, former Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson.
That connection has made peacekeeping part of Canadian lore. It's an ideal many of us identify with as a pillar of our national identity. But as Brown points out, the museum is popular with visitors from around world because peacekeeping truly is a global phenomenon.
The peacekeeping community includes every major nation, and even a few minor ones.
"What the Canadian public reads about in newspapers is happening all over the world. It's not just a Canadian thing," Brown said.
工具 
The 
Orders and Decorations
Modern honours of Canada (1972)
War Medals (1866-1918)
War and Operational Service Medals (1939-2002)
United Nations Medals
International Commission Medals
United Nations Medals
War Service Badges
Memorial Crosses 
Commemorative Medals
Efficiency and Long Service Decorations and Medals
