Chuck In Oregon

Back in 2005 I posted my Red Cross Hero's Group. I think it would fit nicely into this thread. Chuck

It is quite a leap from "Without engaging in any religious discussions,,," to "Abacadabra... you are alive again." There's nothing magic about religion. One may believe or not, who cares, but why make demeaning comments? They are, and perhaps are meant to be, self-defining, as are all other prejudicial remarks. I like the collection of cards, though, and I'd like to see more. I may have a few around here somewhere. Chuck

Thanks for a look at these rare orders and photos of their recipients. Don't think I'll be adding any of these to my collection any time soon. Chuck

I'm late to the game but I'd like to offer a different interpretation of these photos. The regional hat (I have several), the distinctive and traditional choka (tunic) and the kindjal all suggest Georgian to me. Georgia wasn't conquered until 1921 so 1920s works, maybe late '20s. A trick rider group of escaped/resettled/whatever Whites isn't impossible, I suppose (see Buffalo Bill), but that seems sacrilegious to me and I tend to doubt it. Nice find. Chuck

VERY nice post and follow-ups and very interesting. I think the most any Georgian was awarded was four, all were combat (a pilot), and I own that group, ex-Tbilisi Museum of the Revolution. I think I posted it here, sometime in the distant past. According to the ex-director of the museum, he was supposed to get an HSU but Stalin notoriously hated Georgians and denied it, so they gave him a fourth Red Star. Just a story and I can't support it, but I tend to believe it. But SIX? Wow. Chuck

Good Morning Again THAT was fast. I don't know much more than what I wrote except this: Our MM has a note after his mark and name that says дер. Даниловское. The 56 proof mark is early 20th century, so that is consistent with your time frame. The MM is in a rectangular stamp, rather than an oval, and that is also consistent with our MM. My book notes that he was from Kostroma. That may have some small significance as Kostroma was a favorite place of the Romanovs, including Nicholas II. There must have been a lot of fine jewelers/makers in Kostroma back then. The only city with more pages devoted to it in my reference is Moscow. I'm sorry, but that's all I've got. A maker of orders, but maybe not a master, although he is listed in the Masters category in my book. I wish you the best outcome with your research. Kindest regards, Chuck

Good Morning Avs I knew I should have done a better job with this, or maybe just not have said anything. I apologize. Please remember, I don't claim any expertise in makers' marks. I may be embarrassingly wrong about this but heck, I've been embarrassed before. The stamped MM (if that's what it is) above the large oval/56 is the maker's mark, right? Not the bust and 56. If so, what appears to me to be an MM above the large oval/56 would be the maker's mark. I can't see it clearly because of the glare and it's not what you focused on, but that's what it looks like to me. It certainly could be something else. I think of a classic M as two vertical lines with a V-shaped line connecting them at the top. However, there are stylized versions of all the letters and I thought a stylized version might just be a straight bar between the vertical lines, looking sort of like a Latin HH. However, I can't find such a mark in my (partially destroyed) reference book. So, believing it to be a rather formal, standard MM maker's mark, I found the maker I mentioned. I couldn't find a (Cyrillic) NN makers mark. The only similar MM mark was mid-19th century so I eliminated it from consideration. My book doesn't have a period for this maker, only a year - 1898. That puts it close to your time frame. If I'm reading the reference correctly, he was an assistant to Danilovski. Good luck with your research. You can do much better than me. Chuck

I can't tell if this is a block MM with straight crossbars (for want of a better word) or a block MM with a V-shaped crossbars. If the latter, could it be Mikael Mikaelov Murii? My reference is very rudimentary but that may be a possibility. Good luck, and please let us know. Chuck

I hate to ask such a dumb question, but is it a requirement that we have taken the photos ourselves? For instance, I own two small WW I Russian personal photo albums. Can I submit a photo from one of them? I doubt it, but I'd like to be sure. Chuck

Very interesting thread. I knew a collector in Baku who had a VERY large outstanding offer for an authentic example for years, subject to authentication by the state museum. He never had a taker. Chuck

Thanks for clearing that up for me Valter. Chuck