Order of St. Alexander

[Hauptmann]

Could have sworn I'd posted this years ago but after doing a number of searches and being unable to find it I decided to scan and post it. Am I correct that this is the Order of St. Alexander V Class with Crown and Swords? Also, can anyone give me an idea of the value of this Order?

Any help is as always deeply appreciated!

[Hauptmann]

[Hauptmann]

[Hauptmann]

Many thanks in advance!

Dan

[922F]

Yes, this is a 5th class Bulgarian kingdom type Order of St. Alexander with crown & swords-on-ring. Likely a 1930s Sofia-made, silvered base metal piece with a replacement ribbon. EBay sold prices are probably the best market price indicator. These sell there [when available] for anywhere from 100 euros/$130 to 175 euros/$225 or more. Dealers, in the face of stockage and other costs, list this type for up to 250 euros/$375 or more. Earlier made examples in actual silver achieve about 15-20% higher prices. Other varities, such as regency or republic types usually command higher prices.

[Hauptmann]

Yes, this is a 5th class Bulgarian kingdom type Order of St. Alexander with crown & swords-on-ring. Likely a 1930s Sofia-made, silvered base metal piece with a replacement ribbon. EBay sold prices are probably the best market price indicator. These sell there [when available] for anywhere from 100 euros/$130 to 175 euros/$225 or more. Dealers, in the face of stockage and other costs, list this type for up to 250 euros/$375 or more. Earlier made examples in actual silver achieve about 15-20% higher prices. Other varities, such as regency or republic types usually command higher prices.

WOW... many thanks! That's just what the doctor ordered!!!! Great info and tells me tons more than I've known up to this point. This is one I picked up well over 25 years ago at a little militaria shop, not even knowing what it was but just that it looked neat and had the enamels I love. Can hardly believe they've risen so much but seeing as how even German Hindenburg Crosses have gone up, at least on some Ebay sales and dealer prices I guess anything is possible. I remember we used to pick up double court mounted bars of WW1 EK 2's and Hindenburg Crosses for like $12 to $15 each! Now... they go upwards of $100 to $150 on Ebay and it blows me away each time I see that.

The world turned upside down. But admittedly 20 to 25 years or so is a long time when it comes to prices and such. I remember when if you paid $1.00 for a paperback book it was a really thick one and that was pricey. Comic books ran .15 to .25 cents each... oh for the good old days!

Again thanks so much for this great info! I deeply appreciate your help on this!

Dan

[922F]

WOW... many thanks! That's just what the doctor ordered!!!! Great info and tells me tons more than I've known up to this point. This is one I picked up well over 25 years ago at a little militaria shop, not even knowing what it was but just that it looked neat and had the enamels I love. Can hardly believe they've risen so much but seeing as how even German Hindenburg Crosses have gone up, at least on some Ebay sales and dealer prices I guess anything is possible. I remember we used to pick up double court mounted bars of WW1 EK 2's and Hindenburg Crosses for like $12 to $15 each! Now... they go upwards of $100 to $150 on Ebay and it blows me away each time I see that.

The world turned upside down. But admittedly 20 to 25 years or so is a long time when it comes to prices and such. I remember when if you paid $1.00 for a paperback book it was a really thick one and that was pricey. Comic books ran .15 to .25 cents each... oh for the good old days!

Again thanks so much for this great info! I deeply appreciate your help on this!

Dan

You are certainly welcome. Besides inflation, another factor impacting prices in general is the growing availability of decent reference works enabling us to know what we have and to assess rarity/desirability. For Bulgaria, Pavlov and Dimitrov deserve special thanks. Many GMIC members have contributed to this ever-expanding knowledge base and merit thanks. Guess we must remember that in the days of the $100 Albert Order Grand Cross set [cased!], you were fortunate to make $10,000 a year!!

[Hauptmann]

You are certainly welcome. Besides inflation, another factor impacting prices in general is the growing availability of decent reference works enabling us to know what we have and to assess rarity/desirability. For Bulgaria, Pavlov and Dimitrov deserve special thanks. Many GMIC members have contributed to this ever-expanding knowledge base and merit thanks. Guess we must remember that in the days of the $100 Albert Order Grand Cross set [cased!], you were fortunate to make $10,000 a year!!

Well, that's very true... it's all relative. I also remember when you could buy a nice Chevy convertible for around $2,500! Try that now! Even a used one!

And yes, so many of our members deserve so much in the way of thanks and tons of credit for improving the hobby, making information much more widely available, not only through the club but also by writing references, etc. Of course the rising prices can be one result but more folks in the hobby with more education under their belts is definitely a good thing.

So much has been uncovered and brought to light in so many areas since I started and one can only imagine how much more will come out of the woodwork over the next twenty to thirty years, including in new areas that folks have tended to ignore till now. I see more interest in Africa and the Middle East as an example. There have always been collectors in those areas but I feel it's becoming more widespread as folks are priced out of other areas and moving on to greener (and cheaper) pastures.

Dan