Medal for Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, silver version for the defenders of Port Arthur, by the Brothers Buch factory (marked "FG"), circa 1906-1908 issue.
In silver; measures 32.4 mm in height incl. eyelet, 27.9 mm in width; weighs 10.8 g not including the suspension and connecting link. The eyelet displays an "84" silver hallmark with the "Kokoshnik" facing left and Cyrillic letters "AP" ("AR") of the St. Petersburg assay inspector Aleksandr Romanov who occupied the position from 1904-08. The eyelet also shows a clearly legible Cyrillic maker mark Ф.Г. ("FG"), the initials of Karl Friedrich (Fyodor) Gutheil, the principal owner and director of the Brothers Buch factory in St. Petersburg (the name of the company is &#
In silver; measures 32.4 mm in height incl. eyelet, 27.9 mm in width; weighs 10.8 g not including the suspension and connecting link. The eyelet displays an "84" silver hallmark with the "Kokoshnik" facing left and Cyrillic letters "AP" ("AR") of the St. Petersburg assay inspector Aleksandr Romanov who occupied the position from 1904-08. The eyelet also shows a clearly legible Cyrillic maker mark Ф.Г. ("FG"), the initials of Karl Friedrich (Fyodor) Gutheil, the principal owner and director of the Brothers Buch factory in St. Petersburg (the name of the company is Бухъ in contemporary Russian spelling, pronounced Bukh).
The medal is in outstanding, excellent condition. The medallion is almost completely free of wear visible to the naked eye. There are just a few tiny, nearly unnoticeable dings, mostly to the raised edge on the reverse; there are no bumps or edge knocks. The raised details are essentially pristine and extremely crisp. Very attractive even patina to silver throughout.
The medal comes with an original period St. Alexander Nevsky / St. George ribbon measuring 28 mm wide and approx. 25 cm in overall length; it is mounted on a relatively recent backing in thin brass made for a collector's display and secured on the back with pieces of tape. The ribbon shows only a minimal amount of wear and remains perfectly sound and clean. The connecting link is a replacement.
The silver version of the medal was awarded exclusively to military personnel who had participated in the defense of Port Arthur during the epic siege lasting from August 1904 through January 1905. This particular piece is of very high quality, although its details are different in many small details from the state mint version. The hallmarked privately made issues of this medal are very scarce even in relation to the uncommon Port Arthur veteran versions in silver issued by the state mint.
/Dimitri Romanov, The Orders, Medals and History of Imperial Russia, pp. 240, 241/
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