The Queen's Service Medal is a medal awarded by the government of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

to recognise and reward volunteer service to the community and also public service in elected or appointed public office. It was established in 1975 and is related to the

Queen's Service Order The Queen's Service Order, established by royal warrant of Queen Elizabeth II on 13 March 1975, is used to recognise "valuable voluntary service to the community or meritorious and faithful services to the Crown or similar services within the pu ...

. The QSM replaced the

Imperial Service Medal The Imperial Service Medal (ISM) is a medal affiliated with the Imperial Service Order. The medal was established under the statutes of the Imperial Service Order, on 8 August 1902, by King Edward VII, with the first awards appearing in the Londo ...

as an award of New Zealand.

Appearance

1975–2007

The original medal was made of sterling silver, in diameter. The

obverse Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ...

bears the same effigy of

The Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

as the badge of the Queen's Service Order. Surrounding the effigy are the Royal styles and titles "ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA F.D.". The reverse depicts the New Zealand Coat of Arms surrounded by the inscription "The Queen's Service Medal" and the name of the sub-division either "for Community Service" or "for Public Services". The initials and name of the recipient is engraved on the rim of the Medal. The medals were made by the

Royal Mint The Royal Mint is the United Kingdom's oldest company and the official maker of British coins. Operating under the legal name The Royal Mint Limited, it is a limited company that is wholly owned by His Majesty's Treasury and is under an exclus ...

2007–present

The current medal is also made of sterling silver, and is 36 mm in diameter. The obverse bears the

Ian Rank-Broadley Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS (born 1952) is a British sculptor who has produced many acclaimed works, among which are several designs for British coinage and the memorial statue of Princess Diana at Kensington Palace in London unveiled on her 60th ...

designed effigy of The Queen. The effigy is surrounded by the Royal styles and titles "ELIZABETH II QUEEN OF NEW ZEALAND". The reverse bears the New Zealand Coat of Arms surrounded by the inscription "The Queen's Service Medal" above and "for service – MO NGA MAHI NUI" below. The new Badge and Medal are made by Thomas Fattorini Limited, of Birmingham, United Kingdom.

Ribbon

Both versions of the medal are suspended from a ribbon 36 mm wide. The edges are a narrow red ochre (kokowhai) stripe. The center has alternating stripes of red ochre, white and black in a descending step pattern from left to right. The design is inspired by the

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

Poutama pattern used in

Tukutuku Tukutuku panelling is a distinctive art form of the Māori people of New Zealand, a traditional latticework used to decorate meeting houses (wharenui). Other names are tuitui and arapaki. Tukutuku flank the posts around the edge of the wharenui ...

wall panels. It is usually interpreted as the "stairway to heaven", but in this case it refers to "steps of service".

References

External links