Article about: Hello, I have been a long time lurker here and have learnt much from the forum, any info about the unit banner in the attached photos has escaped me though and so I thought I would post the
Hello, I have been a long time lurker here and have learnt much from the forum, any info about the unit banner in the attached photos has escaped me though and so I thought I would post the sellers only pics for opinions please, as to whether real or fake, ww2 or post war era and what would be an realistic approximate value. Thanks in advance.
Regards Andrew.
The real, war time banner probably sits in a museum in Russia or with the unit, if it still exists. (Note the additional ribbons at the top of the staff which signify the additional honors bestowed upon the unit, if indeed this example is authentic.) In my opinion, this is trying to be 9th Mechanized Kiev-Zhitomir Red Banner, Order of Suvorov & Kutuzov Corps Banner, and was, in all probability, manufactured post-war. The unit was disbanded, I believe, in 1958. War time issued unit banners are extremely rare and extremely expensive, and would require, to my way of thinking, iron clad provenance. Most of the authentic examples in collections outside of Russia were stolen from museums and smuggled out of the country at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Yes, my assessment from your photographs, I mean the seller's photographs, is of later production given the velvet construction and all. I really have to idea of its use or intent. I am curious what, if anything, the seller told you about it. My best guess is he/she doesn't know either.
Suffice it to say, if offered I would pass, which is the reason I stick with cold-war Soviet Navy flags, which are dated, in most cases, wool construction, plentiful, and, for the most part, more reasonably priced, issues relative to moths and wool flags notwithstanding, see example below, 1953 dated Fleet Commander Ensign.
Hi Bill, Nice early cold war ensign, I also have a few Soviet naval flags, although mine are dated much later. Regarding the banner, the sellers description was pretty basic they did date it as 70's era though and as I posted previously there were only 2 photo's to go by. It does look fairly impressive though, whatever it is trying to be. Thanks again for your valuable input.
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