A complete, early set of the Order: “Lesser George” in GOLD, 123x113 mm., with beautiful, all-round scene of St. George on a white horse, holding a golden lance, while assaulting the green, red winged dragon, the whole with very fine enamelwork, resting on an oval, fluted and moulded golden base, held in place by means of thin pins, the whole, enclosed in a round, deep-blue enameled garter with the Order’s motto “HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE” in gold lettering, on both sides; the Garter’s buckle and finial, with finely engraved details, suspended to its original, slightly faded, silk sash, an exceptional and early breast star of the Order: Silver, 60x40 mm., separately made, chiselled rays in 4 groups of major and 4 groups of minor ones, hinged to the reverse and made flexible by means of blued-steel feather springs (three, wanting), the tips with small drilled holes to sew the star to the habit; silver centre medallion with red enameled cross, enclosed within the blue enameled Garter, made of gold with chiselled details, the Garter’s end with stylized acanthus leaves, fixed to the lower group of rays, the reverse counter-medallion in gold (traces of scratch-engraved inscription “n° 3 T M Gr.”); in the original, red morocco case with velvet-lined inner compartment, the lid, with ivory silk cushion, there, fixed by a needle an ancient, manuscript paper with: “Star that my (...) Father wore when in evening dress”.
A group of excessive rarity for its type and impressive quality, dating to the last quarter of XVIII Century, nearly extremely fine condition.
Complete sets of this early type are extremely rare and very few breast stars with an almost identical arrangement of hinged rays are known and documented, we can quote that of the Imperial Russian Order of St. Andrew, preserved at the Hermitage, St. Petersburg (Inv. No. ON-VZ-222), published in Spasskij: “Иностранные и Русские Ордена“, St. Petersburg, 1993, page 12, dated to the XVIII Century; and a very similar one, of the same Order, belonged to the German-Russian Field Marshal Count Ivan von Elmpt (1725? – 1802), who received the Order in 1797, and still in the property of the heirs. I RR!