Glory.

[Art]

Originally Posted by jefflgarrison

Guarantee you that my insurance salesman will not price my collection anywhere near what dealers are selling for.

That brings up an interesting point. There must be some sort of formula that these insurance companies use to calculate real value. I would guess the formula would be very specific and used within the entire industry, lest one company happily grant $500 insurance on a Veteran of Labor medal which could then be conveniently "stolen" a few weeks later. Question is, what factors determine the "market value"?

[Eryk]

There is no formula used for antiques, or fine art, or baseball cards, or Soviet Awards.

The only way to ensure you're covered with collectables is to have them documented (original reciepts, descriptions, photos and such), appraised by a qualified appraiser and declared to the insurer. In short you work out the value with the insurance company *before* there's any loss.

If you don't, and try to make a claim on your bog standard homeowner's policy for the replacement or market value of an award after a loss you'll get screwed. You'll get nowhere near what it's worth, if indeed you get anything at all. Many policies explicitly do not cover such things.

For those in the US here's a nifty little article on the subject: http://www.flatherperkins.net/PerkinsInsurance_PI.pdf. Very informative.

[ANZAC]

Originally Posted by EricFG

73 Glorys????? Dang. I'd love to see a shot or two of all of them together. What a glorious (get it?) sight it must be. ;)

Just for you Eric:D

I have 20 framed and 3 that have other awards with them that I didn't photo. total 79;)

Enjoy

Brendan:thumbsup

[Soviet]

What the ...? :wow

I see why there is a phenomenon of rarity here. :)

[Nack]

I've been outside of the awards-collecting sphere for a few months. Are OGIIIs really going for $75+ these days? :yow

[ANZAC]

Originally Posted by Nack

I've been outside of the awards-collecting sphere for a few months. Are OGIIIs really going for $75+ these days? :yow

On e, between $80.00 - $100, if your lucky;). That's just for numbers overs 300k.

Me, I usually don't care what I pay if I want it, as you can see!:D

Brendan:thumbsup

[Nack]

Yikes. Glad I got a few before the price spike!

[EricFG]

Originally Posted by ANZAC

Just for you Eric:D
I have 20 framed and 3 that have other awards with them that I didn't photo. total 79;) Enjoy
Brendan:thumbsup

Very nice Sir, very nice indeed. Thanks. :)

[GeoKeith]

Keep in mind that the price increases in Soviet WWII-related military orders and medals also is linked to a growing cadre of wealthy Russian collectors who want to obtain pieces of their national history. These pieces, especially the higher-end orders, are very rare to begin with (authentic ones at any rate), and many have been returned to the Soviet/Russian government or are in museums. The fact that these pieces of history (and art in many cases) were priced so low as 2002 ($1800 for a HSU and the same for Orders of Glory 1st Class, solid gold) in the west is amazing to me.

GeoKeith

[GeoKeith]

Another comment on Generalissimo's comment about insuring these pieces - related, anyway. I am watching a lawsuit between dealers of certain war badges (not Soviet) and evidently the US legal system does not take a stance on "expert opinions" by anyone. There is absolutely no way any court can take one supposed expert's opinion over another's - there are no legal specifications around such "opinion-making". It appears that, legally, any one of us can make a claim and sell something that is authentic in our opinion, and there is no legal recourse to try such things in court. This is all very interesting to me..evidently, one person's "fake" can be sold on eBay or some website under another seller's opinion that it is real, and the purchaser has no real recourse, other than 'let the buyer beware'.... and use good people and sites like this forum to guide us.

At any rate, this is what I am learning; it would be interesting to see if anyone else has knowledge of any actual stance by the US legal system on opinions between 'experts' concerning these and similar awards...

GeoKeith