It is also conferred upon foreigners who, due to their distinguished position and through their personal worth, have contributed to the promotion of Greece.

The obverse central disc bears a portrait of the goddess Athena and the legend Ο ΑΓΑΘΟΣ ΜΟΝΟΣ ΤΙΜΗΤΕΟΣ ("Only the righteous should be honoured") on a white enamel band.

[1] The reverse bears a simplified national emblem of Greece in the form of a white Greek cross on blue, and on a circular band the legend ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΔΗΜΟΚΡΑΤΙΑ ("Hellenic Republic") and the year of the order's founding (1975).

The reverse bears the Greek national emblem in white enamel and the legend ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΔΗΜΟΚΡΑΤΙΑ 1975 in gold letters.

[7] This design was officially adopted in May 1977 (Presidential Decree 428), and the French firm provided two batches of orders until 1978.

[8] In 1980, an order was given to a Greek firm for 200 crosses of a simplified design, but the result was again far from satisfactory: this type featured a purplish hue of blue, and the head of Athena was flipped and of bad quality.