Exporting Of Items.

[Art]

Try to get some pics of the outside of his shop!

[Pobeda45]

Estonia is a fascinating place, surprisingly segregated actually. The Russians and the Estonians not only seem to stick to their own, but also dress differently. While the Estonians wear clothes most akin to the Dutch (jeans, sneakers, windbreakers), Russians in Tallinn wear leather jackets and the lacquered shoes. At least this is what my experience was there in 2005. Not that it's bad, of course. My buddy with me was laughing that I was dressed like a Russian. (I am, but moved to the States in the 80s. Must be a subconscious thing lol)

Still, the Baltics are the only place I'd try buying militaria. I wouldn't even try bringing these through Russian customs. Every bag gets searched at the Moscow airports. Recently I read a biographical novel called "Tomorrow You Go Home", about an Englishman who was carrying contraband, refused to bribe the SVO customs agent, and finally ended up in a labor colony in the East on trumped up charges! Just not worth it.

George

[RedMaestro2]

Hi All,

Thanks for the advice, everyone. My apologies for not replying sooner. I did not get online much during my trip between not having a computer often and a very busy schedule. I just arrived home. Patrik, I'm especially sorry for not getting in touch with you while I was in Stockholm. Thank you for the offer though.

Oddly enough, while I missed all of the posts about Tallinn antique shops, I ended up at Andry's on my own. Andry himself was not there, which is unfortunate in hindsight hearing your description of him, Gary. He sounds interesting. But instead there was a jolly old Estonian woman behind the counter, who was very nice and helpful. I picked up two groups, which I will post in a moment. Art, sorry I didn't take pictures of the front of the shop. I did snap the inside though (see below).

George, I noticed the separation of ethnicities you mentioned quite clearly in Tallinn. It seems like a worrying situation to me. The cultural clash must be a prickly issue.

I forgot to mention when I wrote from abroad that the medal exhibit was still on display at the Kremlin armory. Photography was forbidden, unfortunately. In the showcase were no less than 7 Orders of Victory, not to mention the Suvorov's, Kutuzov's, Ushakov's, etc. Whether these were real or copies I'm not qualified to say. They looked better than the obvious fakes at the Museum of the Great Patriotic War. When I went to the Hermitage the numanistics collection was unfortunately closed. Could someone who has seen it please tell what the Soviet medals are like? From what I read of the exhibit, I got the impression that actual orders, not just table medals, are on display.

I should report that completely contrary to my expectations, security at the ferry from St. Petersburg to Stockholm was incredibly lax. The baggage scan was half-hearted, and the the boarding process (check-in, security/customs) was incredibly chaotic. I probably could have brought a bag of medals through an no one would have noticed. Perhaps my experience was the exception, though.

Anyway, overall it was a great trip! Now for the medals. First, Andry's shop.

[RedMaestro2]

Here is the first group I purchased. I think it is to members of the same family. Help with the names and their relationship to each other would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance! :thumbsup The group also included two cases and an alleged photo of a recipient.

[RedMaestro2]

Here is the second group, which also came in a case. As you can see, there are plenty of very well scribbled-on documents. The order book for the bravery medal (#2,844,012) is missing, but the medal is confirmed in both the gray booklet (what is this document called please?) and the red military booklet (again, what is the technical name for this?). And what is this recipient's name, please?

Please let me know if you would like to see more scans. As always, your comments are greatly appreciated. :thumbsup


Thanks,

Alex

[Roscoe]

Congratulations on a successful trip and getting a nice documented group. I did a similar trip last year, St. Petersburg and Tallin. I traveled to St Pete's via train from Helsinki and found the security just as lax as you did on the ferry. I bought a Defense of Leningrad medal at the St Pete's flea market and wasn't too worried about getting caught bringing it out.

I'm curious about your ferry trip from St Pete's to Tallin. How long did it take and was it very expensive? I'm planning on going back in a couple of years and would appriciate and tips or advice you have about the ferry.

I only bought a veteran's badge when I was in Tallin. I was too worried about fakes to by anything else. I'm glad you were able get some good stuff.

Roscoe

[Pobeda45]

Cool sets. :thumbsup I miss Tallinn sometimes, great walled city. Too bad it's kind of a tourist trap too. What were the prices like on those Lenins? Could be worth a trip right there if the price is right.

Regarding the set of Estonian docs, they are awarded to:

Rusmanis, Yuris Filipovich (awarded the Badge of Honor) and Rusmane, Biruta Rudolfovna (awarded the Medal for Excellent Labor--the stamp is in the book for the Bravery medal). I assume they are husband and wife since they don't share the same patronymic, nor is the woman's patronymic the first name of the man.

Cool WWII set too. The last doc is for a "disabled war veteran," sad stuff.

George

[EricFG]

the gray booklet (what is this document called please?) and the red military booklet (again, what is the technical name for this?). Alex

I think you're refering to grey-Krasnoarmeets Knizhka: A Red Army Man's ID and red-Voenny Bilet: a Military ID.
Both essentially the same with basic variations being wartime and post war, officer and enlisted.
Thanks for posting the images of the shelves in the shop. That makes me salivate!

[medals73]

Very nice travel report. Thanks. Much tasty eye-candy!

When I was in Moscow, I was warned to buy nothing, as many dealers have connections with the customs folks. You buy a group, your bags are pulled aside for special searching, the medals are confiscated, the payment you made is shared, and the medals show up back in the dealer's shop within a few days. Leave the export of things from Russia to the "pros".

[RedMaestro2]

Thanks for the comments!

Roscoe, I took the St. Peter Line overnight ferry from St. Petersburg to Helsinki. After half a day there I took a two-hour ferry ride to Tallinn. My last ferry was an overnight from Tallinn to Stockholm. For those two I used Tallink. I don't know anything about the trip between St. Petersburg and Tallinn. For the trip between St. Pete's and Helsinki I recommend getting to check-in early. The lines are incredibly long, the system is completely inefficient, and people cut the lines all the time without anyone seeming to object. The plus is that the trip on St. Peter Line is visa-free if you stay in St. Petersburg less than 72 hours. Tallink ferries were more efficient and the ships themselves were much nicer. They do not go to St. Petersburg, however.

Thank you, George, for the names and Eric for identifying the booklets! :thumbsup

Any thoughts with the name for the WW2 group? Here are three more renditions of the name from the documents. Bolshunov, Stefan Kuzlich??? :confused: I have to improve my ability to read cyrillic script. Sometimes I can do it, but if it is a name I haven't heard before or another ethnicity (Estonian, Armenian, etc) it gives me a hard time. With the amount of information in the army booklets, I wonder if getting the award record card when I order research is worth it. Everything but the citation seems to be there already. Thoughts?

Ed, that tactic doesn't surprise me. Still, there are more holes in customs than I would have expected. The biggest difficulty seems to be actually buying the medals. It definitely is not worth the effort, overall. Shopping in the Baltic is so much easier.


Thanks,

Alex