Figure 7: Another gold 5th class, second type cross with superb

enamels and quality numbered 8398 is 42mm by 42mm. It

was awarded to Air Force Corporal Leszek Zaborowski of the

305th Wielkopolski Bomber Squadron stationed at Bramcote.

Figure 8: A superbly made cross in sterling silver by the Polish

jewelry firm, Polish Tech, that also made other decorations

for the Polish Government in Exile. The cross was closely

modeled after the pre-World War H crosses. Polish Tech was

the first private firm to supply the new Virtuti Militari when

the supply of pre-war crosses ran out. These crosses and all

others made after 1940 were never officially numbered, but

many recipients had a number hand engraved. This type is very

rare because a small nu~nber were made. Most of these crosses

were enameled on the reverse and are 43ram by 43ram and are

very rare because of the small number that were produced.

personnel to wear the Order at all times, some were lost,

misplaced and duplicates were necessary. These j eweler’s

crosses were in many cases identical to the government

issue except that they were unnumbered (Figure 8).

Many recipients ordered duplicate crosses in sterling and gold. Some of these crosses bore the jeweler’s

initials, hallmark and assay marks. The serial number

was hand-engraved at the request of the recipients. The

government-awarded crosses were issued to the recipient

free of charge, but duplicates had to be purchased directly

from the jeweler. Today these crosses are considered to

be pre-World War II copies.

The original government-issued machine-stamped

Virtuti Militari 4th class gold crosses and 5th class silver

crosses are extremely rare. The majority of the original

government-issued crosses had an uneven number

stamped on the lower reverse arm. The reason for the

uneven stamping was the fact that some were hand-

stamped. The other reason was that the technology of

the stamping machine employed at the time was not very

efficient. Current copies of Virtuti Militari crosses are

found with perfectly straight-lined, uniform machine-

stamped numbers and some are even hand engraved. Most

of these current copies were made by Panasiuk in Warsaw

and can be found for sale at gun shows and on the Internet

for very low prices to unknowing collectors. Some

entrepreneurs are now stamping numbers on pre-World

War II copies and selling them as original government

issues. When the Polish Government departed from

Warsaw for London in 1939, it took with it the remaining

1501 unawarded crosses as well as the remaining 2rid

and 3rd classes. The 5th class crosses were awarded in the

West with the first award made to Air Force Lieutenant

W. Peski, serial number 8200. By early 1941 the supply

Figure 9: The firm of Spink and Son was the main supplier

of decorations to the Polish Government in Exile. The firm made the Grand Cross, 1st , 4th and 5th classes of the Order (the Polish Exile Government had a supply of 2nd and 3rd class crosses that had been brought from Poland. Spink produced three types of crosses. The first version is 43ram by 43tnm and is enameled on both sides without feathering on the eagle. It has a three-part construction with attached gold center-disks. The cross is heavier than the other two versions.

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Figure 10: The second type of Spink produced cross is 43~nm

by 43mtn and is also a three part construction with enamels on

both sides of the cross. The eagle feathering is more extensive

with the eagle more recessed into the center disk. It is much

thinner then the Figure 9 version and is 43mm by 43ram.

Figure 12: This cross produced by Picciani and Barlacci is a

larger and heavier cross than those made by other jewelers, is

44ram by 44mm in size and made in three pieces. The central

disks are attached to a hollow center and the reverse of the cross is

enameled. The eagle has some feathering. Picciani and Barlacci

made all five classes of the Virtuti Militari all of which are rare.

Figure 11: The third version of cross produced by Spink is

43mm by 43mm and is similar to the second type except that

the center disks on both sides of the cross are more convex.

of the original 5th class crosses made between 1921 and

1923 was exhausted. The Polish Government in Exile

commissioned several firms to make new dies for the

crosses.

The firm of Spink and Son in London made three different

versions (Figures 9 through 11). The firm of Polish Tech

made one version of the 5th class in sterling silver. The

Italian firm of Picciani and Barlachi located in Florence

made one version (Figure 12)) and F.M. Lorioli located in

Rome made another version. The Middle Eastern firm of

M. Rubin in Tel-Aviv also made one version (Figure 13).

These crosses resemble the pre-World War II models.

Figure 13: This type of cross was made in Tel Aviv, Palestine

during World War H for the Polish Forces in the Middle East

and many Monte Cassino and Italy campaign participents were

awarded this type of cross because it was difficult to get crosses

from London. The quality was not as good as those made by

other jewelers due to the economic conditions at that time. One

unique element of the Rubin cross is that the Polish eagle in

the center disk is imbedded. The cross is 43mm by 43ram and

was produced in one piece. Rubin made only the 4th and 5th

class crosses and both classes are very rare. After the war M.

Bialkiewicz, a Polish military jeweler and a recipient of the Order

of Virtuti Militari made superb replicas of the crosses made by

Rubin. These were of superb quality and are also very rare.

The crosses produced by Spink and Son were made in

sterling silver and are of the highest quality followed

by Picciani and Barlachi and Lorioli. The Middle East

Palestinian-version of M. Rubin was made from silver

metal in gold or silver plate and of very low quality and

Vol. 61, No. 5 (September-October 2010) 21

design. 4,800 unnumbered silver 5th class crosses were produced and awarded between 1941-1990 by the Polish Government in Exile. The numerical sequence of awards was maintained for control and recipient identification purposes. The last original pre-World War II Warsaw- made silver crosses awarded in the West was number 9,999. After that, unnumbered crosses made in the West were used for decorating Polish soldiers until 1990. The distribution of the 5th class of the Order up to number 8199 during the years 1920 to 1923 were without major problems, except that 65 duplicate crosses were made and awarded. This may have resulted from errors made during the stamping of serial numbers or when the dies were transferred from one jeweler to another. The new jeweler did not know the last serial number the former jeweler used or a clerical error was made in recording. The list of cavaliers for the 2nd Republic has 316 unknown recipients of the Order whose names have not been found.

The sequence of awarding the crosses was complicated. Cross number 8200 was the first awarded by the Polish Government in Exile. However, crosses with serial numbers 8701 to 8741 and 9704 to 9924 were found to have been already awarded before World War II. It was theorized that the 41 unknown recipients were a group of secret agents, or foreigners, whom the government was not at liberty to disclose or their names were lost during the last 70 years. Similar assumptions were considered for the other 220 crosses. After some serious research

and deduction, the mystery of the sequential awarding irregularity was discovered. Because of a clerical error in 1923, a group of 41 crosses were pulled out of the storage bins ahead of the numerical sequence that should have followed cross number 8200. These crosses were awarded to the veterans of the November 1863 Insurrection.

It was also decided by someone in the Ministry in 1922 to use the crosses with serial numbers 9704 to 9924 as awards to foreigners. The remaining 1501 crosses were kept in reserve in case there was a need to award more Orders to Poles and foreigners for the 1914 to 1921 War. The two governments also awarded five duplicate crosses. When the awarding of the Virtuti Militari was abruptly halted in 1923, the Ministry was left with a surplus of numbered crosses. They remained in the Ministry until the outbreak of World War II and in September, 1939 taken to London. The following is a statistical analysis of the disposition of the 5th class insignia of the Order of Virtuti Militaru produced between 1920 and 1923 and distributed by the Republic of Poland between those same years and the Polish Government in Exile located in London between the years 1939 and 1941.

Based upon an analysis of the number of these 10,000 numbered crosses that exist today, it is the opinion of many people close to this subject that at least 75 percent of them were destroyed or lost during World War II. This fact alone makes the Polish Order of Virtuti Militari a rare decoration.

THE DISTRIBUTION SEQUENCE OF NUMBERED 5TH CLASS CROSSES OF THE ORDER OF VIRTUTIMILITARI DURING THE REPUBLIC PERIOD (1920-1923) AND

THE POLISH GOVERNMENT IN EXILE (1939-1941)

Serial Numbers Number of Crosses Period

1-8199 8,199 8200-8207 8

8208 1

8209-831 123

8332 1

8333-8341 9 8342 1

8343-8356 14

8357 1

8358-8360 3

8361-8365 5

8366 1

8367-8369 3

8370-8417 48

8418 1

8419-8430 12

8431 1

Republic Exile Awarded by both Exile Republic Exile Republic Exile Republic Exile Republic Exile Republic Exile Republic Exile Exile

22 JOMSA