Christian Zulus

Dear "Order of Victory" (you don't have a name ), dear Ed, comarade Ivan Kovalev had been one of the most important figures in the GPW! Railroad transportation was a key issue in WW II! The group is incomlepte, but contains the two most important awards to comrade Kovalev. Also his Kutuzov 1cl is a very rare variation! So, I assume, that this imperfect group will find it's buyer . If I would have the money, I would buy the two awards + booklet. That's market economy & capitalism . Best regards Christian

Dear Simon, send me the attachment(s) via e-mail - I can reduce them also to 150 KB each - an I will post them for you: dialog ET zulusrecords.com Best regards Christian

Congratulations, Simon, you have won Yakov Kreiser had been one of THE top-tank-generals in WW II . And the Jewish people in the Soviet Union got - in relation to the number of Jewish people ! - by far most of the HSU-Gold-Stars (about 150!). Some of them, like General Kreiser, twice. So, Jews had been the greatest heros in the GPW, despite the Shoa , where more than half of the Jewish population in Europe had been murdered. It is your turn now to give us another question . Best regards Christian

Photograph of a RB #8 Gentlemen, GMIC-member "lentiay" (Maxim) from Russia shows a photograph from a book of an RB #8 in presentation box at that thread: http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?s=&showtop...st&p=136258 You can read under the photographed RB #8 in that book, that all RBs #8 are unnumbered - without s/n. -, due to the fact, that they had been never claimed. So there are unnumbered RBs #8 at stock somewhere ? As far, as I know, Soviet Orders had been numbered just after production ? Best regards Christian

Dear Soviet, for sure: Our comrade got his RB with the CORRECT ribbon . The "Lenin-Ribbon" might have been an "attachment" of one of the dealers in the Baltics . Best regards Christian P.S.: We Austrians are not so "super-correct" , as the Germans might appear.

Dear Erik, that war had come out to be the "Great Patriotic War" - so the obvious resemblances to the Czarist-Period . You think, that a Roosevelt or a Churchill would have killed the Nazi-monster ... Best regards Christian

Dear Soviet, but it is against the regulations !!!!! The ribbons have to be correct. Best regards Christian

Gentlemen, ALL RBls T 2 have maker marks - so that is quite normal for certain screwback-orders. A RBL T 2 without a maker's mark would be highly suspicous . Nevsky's don't have maker marks, i.e. Best regards Christian

Famous General of the GPW Gentlemen, no idea, who that famous comrade could be ? He got twice the HSU AND a Suvorv 2cl AND a Suvorov 1cl - besides a lot of other high-end decorations. That young colonel ended up as a General of the Army - should have been an easy question . Best regards Christian

Dear Sergei, welcome to the Club . Great award & great history! Alexei sells for USD 1,50 genuine replacement-ribbons http://home.netcom.com/~merezhko/medalaccessories.html . Such a special award of a KIA-hero should have the correct ribbon ... Best regards Christian

NEW QUESTION - GUESS WHO? Gentlemen, - who is that high decorated Soviet General of the GPW you can see at the attached photographs? - what is so special about the first of his HSUs he got in GPW and for which deed did he get him? - what is the nationality of that General? BTW: That comrade promoted very fast through the ranks. He received his first HSU as a young colonel and finshed his military service as a General of the Army. So he also received a Suvorov 2cl and later a Suvorov 1cl. O.K., for this time a very easy question, I think, to speed the procedure up a little bit . Best regards Christian

New reference book for YU-Awards ? Dear Soviet, dear Ivan, this is only one very small publication with bad photographs , Ivan mentioned. I would make sense, to publish a decent guide and reference book of YU-Awards. But a PMD-bible for YU-Awards would cost a fortune and a lot of research has do be done . It can be only done in a so called "public-private-partnership" and we have to wait, which government Serbia will have after the 21st of january 2007 and if they are willing to support such a project (maybe there might be also some money from the EU ). The fact is, that the publication of an ultimate guide to YU-Awards might boost the demand for these items. So - seen as a business man - it would make sense, if the team, which publishes the reference book buys a rather large stock of interesting YU-Awards now, to sell them later and so to finance some of the costs of the book, by selling the awards later - after the publication. Just my first thoughts. Best regards Christian

Many thanks, Christophe . But for 95 % it was the merit of my friend Voja from Belgrade . So I am proud to post a new question . This time not dealing with Yugoslavia or dogs of the leaders, but with a (very) famous Soviet general of the GPW - guess who? Give me 20 minutes for the posting ... Best regards Christian

Dear "Order of Victory", he very nice award I have no "Military Merits" in my collection - I never got one for a decent price -, but as a compensation I have a "JNA 2cl" and a "JNA 3cl" (large and heavy) . Best regards Christian

Dear Jim, dear Ed, wise words . My interest in Soviet Awards is of scientific (as a historian) and of "moral-religious" interest. History of the CCCR was my second subject at university (student of the renowned Soviet historian Michail Voslensky, author of "Nomenklatura") and before I started collecting, I already had an interest in Soviet history for 13 years - also some small knowledge about awards and their function in Soviet society, due to the old Herfurth-book of the 1980s and some APN-publications. At the beginning of 1994 I realized just by accident, how cheap Soviet Awards are offered at the stamps, coins & orders dealers in Vienna. A Lenin was just the value of gold! So I invested in a relativly short time some thousend USD in building up a small and decent collection. I had been fascinated by the history, which is kept in each award and also by the great design of the pieces. I have to admit, that I have also a rather "special" relationship to the experiment of Socialism in the former CCCP . For me it is a proven fact, that the extraordinary welfare of the working class in Europe (partly also in America) from 1945 to 1991 had been a "product" - or result - of the existence (and social-political competition) of the "other" political and economical system beyond the "Iron Curtain". Also it is a proven fact, that not the Western Allies smashed the Nazi-system, but the Red Army and the people of the Soviet Union. So, for me it is also an emotional gesture to keep Soviet Awards . To get one's awards researched, is also an act of justice to the - 90 % - unwritten und unpublished true history of the 20th century and to document the deeds of the people, who liberated Europe. I did not start collecting Soviet Awards for making the "big fortune", this was an unforseen "byproduct", which costs me know some insurance fee year for year . For me a Soviet Award has 3 main qualities: - personal history of the awardee (if researched) - general history of the order in the Soviet system - statutes, regulations, etc. - excellence in design. Best regards Christian

Next try Dear Ivan, so, I will choose these two orders in a first step: - Order of the Partisan Star 1cl - Order of Brotherhood and Unity 1cl Both orders Tito received in 1945. Both orders are for generals. Both orders are rare & prestigeous. But the Partisan Star with the golden wreath might be for an Partisan-General of more prestige . I guess, that Koca had been one of the very first awardees of the Partisan Star 1cl. As I read, he got another Partisan Star 1cl in later years. BTW: Who is the actual owner of Koca's orders & medals? They would be a great display for a museum . Our Military Museum at the Kalemegdan in Belgrade doesn't have many orders . Best regards Christian

Dear Dave, I feel really sorry for wasting your precious time with such a worthless and unrepairable piece of scratch . I hope, that my dealer will take my "broken" Quasi-Nevsky back for the initial USD 280,- . Sorry Dave, your remark is not correct, as everyone can read out of the discussion in the thread: I set the (insurance) value of my disgraceful piece of scratch AFTER the discussion in the forum and AFTER my research at the dealers websites - and not before. I presented reasonable arguments after the discussion, why I assume a value of EUR 1600,- for the insurance list. If a collectible is stolen, the insurance company refunds the actual price of the piece, which is asked from the well known dealers at the market, and/or will orient at the result-lists of the well known auction houses. I believe, if the "broken" Quasi-Nevsky would be in your proud collection, you would write a rather similar value into your insurance list . Best regards Christian

Well, maybe the order has no serial number at all - Milan could help us? As the dealer writes, there is NO further conection between the medal & the documents. USD 2800,- is a rather high starting price, which almost represents the market value . I also can't afford it in the moment .... Best regards Christian

Gentlemen, are there no scans of the rv. with the s/n. at ebay to check, if it is actually 138? Milan, have you an idea about the price ranges for these stuff? Best regards Christian

My "broken" Nevsky Dear Dave, dear Jim many thanks for your always appreciated remarks . Years ago, Dave presented a collapsible "Motherland 3cl" to us, as far, as I can rember. What happened to that piece? Gentlemen, if that is the problem, I can go to my juweller and he will hit carefully at the 3 rivets and the "broken" Nevsky will be fixed forever . At the moment two other "less than perfect" Nevsky's T 2 in a rather similar condition to mine one are offered at the market: - USD 1995,- at Igor's website - USD 2750,- at Dimitry's website Let us wait for a few weeks and look, if they sell - the market tell the truth. As long, as the main US-dealers sell their stocks, their prices should reflect the situation at the market. That is how capitalism works, I guess . Right now I will take my Nevsky T 2 with EUR 1600,- into the insurance list. Jim, you are right: The price situation at the market now is horrible and it is for normal people hardly possible to buy some really nice items - except you want to spend a fortune . But on the other side, collectors who bought in the mid-1990s the right stuff, made a profit of at least 400 % (some of us made a even a profit of much more than 1000 %) - that is more than you could have ever made at the stock exchange . I for my part will investment now my money step for step into the research of my modest collection - also a good investment and interesting for the collectors community - and for historians. Dave showed us the way - he was the first, who published the research results of his great collection years ago at his website . Best regards Christian

Dear Soviet, many thanks for the information and the scans of that great, perfect and complete piece of history . Due to the date of issue, it should be the version made of massive gold . What does the seller write? Is it already YU-made, or still a Soviet manufactured piece? What is the asked price? For the gold-version it might be around USD 3000,-. Rather recent Yugoslavian productions in gilt bronze shall sell for about USD 500,-. (Both prices are still a bargain considering the importance and rarity - 1346 had been awarded.) Best regards Christian P.S.: Due to the fact, that a use a "german" browser, I have NO access to the militaria-site of ebay .

Dear Jim, many thanks for your highly interesting remarks about the market . But there is a growing demand (from Russia) for high-end Soviet orders and we have a lot of "agressive" buyers. So I have no doubt (as long, as there is enough money in Moscow & St. Petersburg), that the price tags of high-end items will be for a long time on the move upwards. May I explain: - My Nevsky does not "come to pieces"! It is fixed with the 3 rivets and you need force to pull apart. I just wanted to show to the interested GMIC-members, how an old Nevsky looks inside and how repair works can be done in a rather professional way. - A Nevsky T 2 in "good condition" costs today USD 2850,- at Prof. Eugene Rabkins website, who is known for very moderate price tags & good stuff. If you have your source for getting good restored Nevsky's T 2 for well under USD 1000,- in Switzerland or Europe, then you might make good money with them and a profit of about 100 % . Best regards Christian

Nevsky T 2 - present market realities Dear Soviet, dear Ed, I just took the time and checked some of the major US-dealer sites for a Nevsky T 2 - without documents, unresearched and without PMD-certificate. The result is, that Igor - USD 1995,- - has the best offer in terms of price/quality . Dimitry Markov asks for a Nevsky T 2 with rather severe scratches and rather bad enamel USD 2750,- and Prof. Eugene Rabkin for a truley nice example - good enamel, well preserved gold and no scratches - USD 2850,-. O.K., these prices are asked and our Russian friends in the USA sell their stocks . And: Due to it's superior design, rarity, statutes, etc., a Nevsky is one of the most wanted Soviet orders among collectors, which also acclerates the price movement. I don't think, that Igor is soooo expensive at the level of high-end awards - i.e. he offers a RBL T 2 with PMD-certificate, but restored - for under USD 1000,-! But for "cheaper" awards his price tags are rather high. Coming back to YU-Awards at Igor's website: The prices of the more rarer and higher ranking awards are still in a moderate region, but I would not spend about USD 30,- for a YU-guards-badge or for a YU-borderguards-badge. Generally: In my modest opinion, the price tags for YU-Awards are far too low: About USD 100,- for a Soviet-made "Partizan Star" is a bargain . Best regards Christian

Dear Ivan, I guess: Order of the National Liberation ? That award was instituted on August, 15, 1943, only 262 awardees and very rare. Koca is also one of the 7 awardees of the "Order of Freedom", the counterpart of the Soviet "Order of Victory" and the only YU-Award Tito wore in "full size" at his white uniform. Best regards Christian

Dear "Order of Victory", many thanks But as long, as I don't HAVE to sell parts of my collection, I won't sell awards . It is important for me - and my (expensive) household-insurance - to know the market values of the items. Best regards Christian