posted 07-06-2008 01:53 PM            

I picked this bracelet up from a street market in Kiev. It is typical of Niello bracelets made in Dagistan. From what I can make out, it bares the Soviet mark for 1927-58, but might also be the 1908-1917 tsarist mark (hard to tell whether it contains the hammer). The district mark appears to be epsilon for Kazan. I am puzzled by the other mark, which appears to be a makers mark but also contains a number. All I have is Tardy. I am hoping some one with P&L or more experience with Russian silver can confirm my tentative conclusions and/or provide more information on the maker and date.

Thanks,
Tom

posted 09-17-2008 04:48 PM            

In the event you have not gotten any further info on this, could you please write out the letters & numbers that you are looking for. I am having a difficult time reading them.

Thanks

posted 09-20-2008 03:20 PM            

Thanks. I had almost given up on this post. Here are the letters and number as best I can make them out:

E Greek letter epsilon

875 for silver content

: 53 K 1 (this one puzzles me and I cannot say for sure the last symbol is the number 1) I think it is the makers mark. P&L should list it, but I don't have a copy, and I don't read Russian.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Tom

posted 09-20-2008 06:09 PM            

After what you call the greek letter epsilon, (I call it) a 3, (three), is that a knight head or some such after it?

posted 09-21-2008 02:58 PM            

Further, it is a number 3 and not epsilon, the lowercase of which looks like a reversed 3. In any case, neither 3 nor epsilon was used at any time in the Soviet era as an assay office mark. (Although the mark from 1927-1958 for Kazan was a lowercase upsilon - which looks like the Latin lowercase "u" - which again, clearly this is not.)

In short, none of these marks are listed in P-L. If forced to hazard a guess, they could possibly be new post-1991 marks from a former Soviet satellite state. I know such marks exist, but tracking them down has proved difficult.

There is always the possibility, too, that they are simply fake marks, of which there are currently no shortage in Eastern Europe. (So much so that I have adopted a strict policy, and encourage others to do so as well: "Assume all Russian marks to be fake until convinced otherwise.")

posted 09-21-2008 03:05 PM            

The first problem here is that Postnikova-Losseva gives rather sparse coverage to that area, and the newer Geoffrey Watts volume while an improvement in some areas doesn't add a whole lot there either - and cuts off at 1917.

posted 09-22-2008 03:36 PM            

Very interesting. Fortunately, I followed my own rule in buying this: never spend more than you would mind losing if the piece turns out to be a complete fake. I am inclined to think FWG's answer may be right about recent origin in Samarkand/Tashkent. This style of jewelry does seem to be unique to the North Caucusus and central Asia. I bought one in Georgia in 2004 and have seen several others. Anecdotally (and of no great value in resolving this mystery!), the street vendor at the market in Kiev did not haggle at all. I asked the price, walked away, and came back in a bit to buy it. My experience has been that when something is a genuine fake of little value, sellers start knocking the price down when you lose interest.

Anyway, my wife really likes the bracelet.

posted 09-22-2008 05:39 PM            

Well I kept your post alive to get you more help I hope.
Don't know if this is relevant to the meaning of : but here it is.
One of the signs for silver in alchemy. Other old signs for silver, the second most precious of metals in the antiquity and Middle Ages is : There were other symbols as well.

From symbols.com