joe campbell

i'll bet you never forget the look on his face when you presented him with his medals... a sad thing to lose one's father, but even sadder to think of all those young men and women who NEVER met their offspring. one of my partners father was KIA in viet nam 2 weeks after her birth... your attention to his accomplishments was a prize to him and a treasure for you. welcome aboard! joe

there is nothing about this cross and it's construction that i don't love!! a very nice find! as usual... joe

thanks for the great pictures gordon and all! interesting and unique thread. joe

nice chapeau! do you have an example of the armband? joe

worth bidding on, however! joe

very nice!

hot off the sewing machine...

great picture! these gentleman favor function over fashion! joe

patrick- don't know much about them either, but both are quite handsome, and the info you've provided is quite interesting! start with an object and work backwards. i wonder if you might try to contact the author of the article... he may be able to put you onto some references/people with specific knowledge of these time pieces. i feel quite certain they are out there. thanks, joe PS my great grandfather is from Housebay/Stronsay/Orkney.

i have six of them, have looked at probably six hundred, and can't recall a single one with MM. but i've only been at it 7 or 8 years... joe

re: 666 this would be a first in the 1870, let alone 1914, issue. and they were made as basically a batch or run of them. it may be a first, but my suspicion is that the digits on the jump ring were added. JMHO. joe

i have less problems with this cross except to say that i don't believe the 999, and that the unique pin attachment would hardly raise the price to $800. my opinion is that this is probably one of the 1890's issue of the 1870 EK's. curious to hear what others think. joe

it's the connection , or "jump" between the cross and the ribbon ring. 3 is not really a maker mark. best guess is that it's an inspector number. kind of like that piece of paper in the three packs of new underwear : "inspected by #6".... probably the last person to see the completed cross prior to putting on the ribbon ring. joe

yes, it is a "3" and i assume a '14 EK. not common to see MM on jump rings, but not unheard of, and usually a single digit. joe

there was also an "after-market" jewellers trade for those who wished to spend some extra, where adjustments could be made on things like EK's... there was still quite a bit of talent around from the grand days of WW1 and inter-war who would make things to specification. joe

any chance of a picture of the whole cross? from what i see so far, however, i hold little hope that this is an unretouched, high silver content 1870 EK... joe

FLL. joe

looks like one of the "russian horde" that helmut weitze brought back from the soviet union after the wall came down. square button case, generally in unissued condition, but having said that, i've seen various states of pristine. nice cross! joe

the 25 year eichenlaub is fine. i wouldn't have the cross in my collection, except perhaps as a curiosity. sorry. joe

andreas- as always, an interesting vignette, well supplied with impressive documents and that 200+ year old PLM. any idea where his other awards are? joe

a sideline special interest of mine - 1914 EK 2 maker marks... i've looked through 1000's and 1000's, and there are a signi- ficant percentage with incomplete or illegible maker marks on them. this is one of those, i think. nice cross, however!! joe

handsome! joe

does the heart and blood GOOD to see a brief glimpse of the notorious and much-missed Ricky Ricardo!!!! as usual, it is a thought provoking topic. i'd GLADLY volunteer to be the squirrel running the wheel that drives the generator that powers the computer/Epson which brings you back on board... joe

much obliged, valgor! you have a unique, high quality piece there. joe

what a splendid effort!!! i can't even get my garage cleaned in the course of a year, and sergey rebuilds a T-34!!!!! congratulations on your labor of love. joe