Linasl

Thanks Paul. I shall avoid it. Linas

Thanks Dan. Like I suspected. Linas

Good luck Jonas. I love Prague - been there many times. Until next time. Linas

Greetings. I know very little about British Medals. A seller is proposing to me what appears to be the Order of the Bath, but based on my Google research, the arms are supposed to be white, not gold. Thus, is this one an original or a copy? I have attached a low resolution photo on this listing, but have two high resolution photos on PhotoBucket (the only two he sent me - none of the reverse). You can follow this link: http://s752.photobuc...f%20the%20Bath/ Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Linas

Thanks for the offer Jonas. Do you speak Czech too? Linas

Thanks Jonas. Good lead for me. Yet the hunt continues. Take care. Linas

WOW Sergey. Thank you VERY MUCH!! Since I have no idea, what kind of value does this badge have? Linas

Greetings. I have a badge that appears to be military and is made by Sporrong of Sweden (it is 39mm x 39mm). Thus, I assume it is for a Nordic country. Does anyone know anything about this? Like what country, what organization/regiment (if military), age, what it was for? Attached to this post is a low resolution photo of the front. But I have three high resolution photos on PhotoBucket, if you follow this link: http://s752.photobuc...Nordic%20Badge/ Any and all information would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Linas

Thank you Michael. So as Ulsterman said, it is probably pre-1792 French monarchy. Would you agree? Since I typically only deal in medals, I have no idea about gorgets. Any guess on the value of such an item? Thanks to both of you. Linas

Thank you Don. I will take a look at the site. Linas

Thank you Michael. Were/are gorgets only worn in full dress, or at other times? I honestly have no idea. Thanks again. Linas

Greetings All. I have an interesting "collar" that I believe is Imperial French (three fleur-de-lys). I assume this is of military origin. I have attached a low resulution photo on this post, but you can see a number of high resolution photos on one of my PhotoBucket albums, following this link: http://s752.photobuc.../linasl/Collar/ I have several questions: 1. is this Imperial FRENCH? a. if not French, do you know what country? 2. does it look original? 3. do you know from which Imperial epoque this is from (Napoleon, Louis XVIII, Charles X, Louis Philippe)? 4. who would have worn this / was it an award, a ceremonial piece, etc? Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Linas

Greetings All. I have an interesting badge that I believe is Imperial Russian (some Cyrillic letters at bottom). I assume this is for firemen, possibly of military origin. I have attached a low resulution photo on this post, but you can see a number of high resolution photos on one of my PhotoBucket albums, following this link: http://s752.photobuc...Russian%20Fire/ I have several questions: 1. is this Imperial Russian? 2. does it look original? 3. what is this badge for (service, award, etc)? 4. when was it issued/used? Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Linas

Greetings All. I have an interesting medal dated 1938 and sates "SS" on the front. I know nothing about this. Any assistance in identifying this medal (or coin?) would be greatly appreciated. If this is not the correct forum, please let me know. I have attached a low resolution photo on this post, but you can see two higher respolution photos (front & back) on my PhotoBucket Album by following this link: http://s752.photobuc...8%20Medal_Coin/ Any help would be great. Thank you. Linas

Hello. I have a badge that I believe is German Nazi for Home Air Defense. Could anyone tell me what this is? If not in this forum, can you please tell me which forum to direct this question? A low Resolution photo is attached to this topic. Two higher resolution photos are available on PhotoBucket, using this link: http://s752.photobucket.com/albums/xx168/linasl/German%20Air%20Defense/ Any help would be appreciated. Thank you. Linas

Hello Sergey. I understand the confusion - my apologies. What needs to be understood is that my discussions with the Polish expert is ongoing. My first enquiry was mostly based on what the auction house where I bought the Breast Star told me. Now I know that the auction house has no clue - not surprising. My Polish expert, from the beginning, thought it was 18th or early 19th century - which could be Kingdom of Poland or Russian-occupied Poland. He cannot give any further details. But he is very confident about the dating and that this Breast Star is not a fake. Believe me, it is frustrating. Even the Polish photo you shared with me doesn't help me a lot because, as I repeated multiple times, there were many versions of this, and most, Orders awarded in Europe - typically custom-designed to fit the wishes of the recipient. Even Goering of the Nazi Luftwaffe had his medals custom-designed. One big issue is the hallmark. Noone seems to recognize it. That is too bad. By identifying the hallmark, much of the "mystery" surrounding my Breast Star would be answered. So... we are no closer to an answer. Maybe some day. Linas

Hello Sergey. Thank you for the photos. But what you don't seem to realize is that not one Breast Star looks like any other. Many different versions of this Breast Star have been made for several centuries - your links prove that. Also, there were "official" Breast Stars approved by the govenment, and then there were custom-made Breast Stars based on the wishes of the "client" who was awarded the Order. This happened VERY often in the 18th to early 20th century. It STILL happens here in France with the Legion d'Honneur. Thus, I must ask - after reviewing all the different versions of the Order on the sites for which you provided links, what makes you so sure that the one I presented is not authentic, whereas all the others are? Are you a world-renown expert on this Order? Have you published expert-reviewed books? Or are you just giving your opinion? How you answer these questions (I already know the answer) will tell me how much trust I should put in your analysis, versus those of true, world-renown, critically-acclaimed published authors who have reviewed my Breast Star in great detail. I am not trying to be disrespectful, but you seem driven to attack my credibility, yet your own message that provided links to multiple renditions of the Order makes me wonder why you are so determined to disqualify my copy of the Breast Star as a fake. Lastly, you did not provide any information on the original POLISH order from the 18th century, before the Russians decided to destroy Poland with its forced occupation which was completed back in 1795 during the Third Partition. Remember, the Order of the White Eagle was, and ALWAYS was, a POLISH Order. The Russians liked it, so they adopted it for themselves. Keep in mind, MY expert, with over 60 years of experience and respected around the world as the #1 expert on Polish militaria believes MY Breast Star is a Polish 18th Century, pre-1795 version. He NEVER thought it was Russian. I would be curious to hear how you will counter the beliefs of someone who has been researching and collecting longer than I have ben alive (I was born in 1964). I look forward to your response. Thank you. Linas

Greetings All. Want to let you know that this Breast Star is now listed on eBay. You can click on the title below, or search via the Item Number: XRARE French Colonial Comoro 1887/8 Anjouan Breast Star - 190386490562 If you do bid, good luck. And thank you all for the great discussion surrounding this Star. Take care. Linas

Greetings. Thank you for your input. The "expert" I was speaking about is an expert in Polish medals and Orders, of which the Order of the White Eagle was and still is. Russia "adopted" the Order as its own after the Third Partition in 1795 - yet it remains a POLISH Order. And the expert I refer to has been collecting, researching and writing about Polish Medals and Orders for SIXTY years. As such, I trust his opinion more than most others. And he lives in the US, after emigrating from Poland after WW2. I am in France. Interestingly though, another world-renown medal expert with over 40 years experience just wrote to me about an hour ago that it looks as if the Order was manufactured in Siam in the early 19th century, based on general design specifications obtained by Asiatic leaders who visited Poland and/or Russia in the late 18th century. He mentioned this to me because the hallmark looks to him, based on his experience, to be Asiatic. Regarding Auction House experts, I do not rely on them. Their objective is to sell. The two experts I mentioned are not sellers, but avid collectors and researchers. Thus, I trust their opinions more than most. Ultimately, none of us may ever know the truth. But for now, I am more than comfortable relying on two people who have a combined 100 years of experience. All for now. Thank you. Linas

Hello Sergey. Thank you for your thoughts. I though humbly disagree. I had the top expert in the world on Polish medals and orders given in the last 400 years (which would include 1795-1918, while Poland was under Russian rule) inspect this Order closely. I though cannot mention his name, as per his request (if you know Polish medals and orders, you know who I am speaking about). He and I both know that it was not made in Poland or Russia, but, in his expert opinion, it is an 18th century model made according to the specifications of the officer or nobleman who was awarded this Breast Star. This was often done in the last several centuries. For example, someone who was awarded the French Legion d'Honneur during the reign of Napoleon I, Louis Philippe, or Napoleon III, would receive the original medal, then go to their favorite jeweler to make a nicer one, typically adding diamonds to the star's "bulbs" and including emeralds in the green wreath. Does this thus make it a fake? No, not at all. Actually, it makes it more valuable, especially if you collect French medals like I do. I have at least 20 Legion d'Honneur 1st and 2nd Empire, and not one looks exactly like another. This is not done anymore, but was common practice during the 18th to early 20th century. The issue though is that we may never know for sure. Linas

Well Milan, you have an amazing collection! As an aside, I have a Polish/Russian Order of the White Eagle (coincidence in naming) Grand Cross Breast Star with Swords which one expert believes is late 18th/early 19th Century. But he has never seen this particular hallmark before. Maybe you have, or know somebody who may know? Please look at the photos in my PhotoBucket album for the Order, and focus in on the photo that magnifies the hallmark. Maybe I will get lucky. It is at: http://s752.photobucket.com/albums/xx168/linasl/Order%20of%20the%20White%20Eagle/ Please let me know, OK? Thank you once again. Linas

Hello Milan. Just looked at your site. Quite amazing! Do all these medals belong to you? Thanks for sharing. Linas

Hello Milan. Thank you for your great comments. Now I am certain of the originality of my medal. I tried to look at your site, but all I got was the home page and I could not figure out how to "get inside". Do I need to subscribe to your site first? Please let me know because I am curious to see your collection. Greetings from Paris. Take care. Linas

Thanks for the photo Emanuel. Ours look very similar. I also registered with both photo sharing sites. Even though ImageShack shows great resolution photos, I can't figure out how to organize different photos into different albums (I am tech-stupid). Thus, I registered with PhotoBucket and it seems to work better - album-wise that is. OK Emanuel. Very nice to have met you online and thank you for all your assistance. Take care. Linas

Thank you. Linas