Russia, Imperial. An Early 1912 Air Force Donation Jetton

Constructed of silver with enamels, on loop for suspension, the obverse consisting of an oval laurel leaf wreath, joined together at the bottom by a blue enameled ribbon bearing a silvered Russian Cyrillic inscription, overlaid by a silver monoplane, the reverse bearing a silver kokoshnik mark of “84” for 875 purity, with a silversmith mark of “ВА”, measuring 22.77 mm (w) x 34.23 mm (h), weighing 9.8 grams, with some wear evident to the enamels, in near extremely fine condition.

Footnote: According to page 37 of Robert Werlich’s “Jettons of Imperial Russia”, 1985, this jetton was created by the Imperial Special Committee for the Strengthening of the Air Force. It was offered to individuals who made a minimum 100 ruble donation to the fledgling Imperial Russian Air Service.