2nd-class Order of Saint Anne

The Order of Saint Anne was established in the Duchy of Holstein (1735). Russia incorporated it into its decorations officially in 1797. Since 1816, the Russian order has had the form of a cavalier cross, covered in red enamel, with a gold border around the edges. In the central medallion, on white enamel, there is a figure of St. Anne with a book (an attribute of the saint). Diamonds or other stones were set between the arms of the cross in openwork ornaments. Differences in appearance are due to manufacturing orders in different workshops. In the hierarchy of Russian decorations, the Order of Saint Anne took the penultimate (sixth) place before the Polish Order of Saint Stanislaus (1831). The presented Order of Saint Anne of the 2nd Class belonged to the Polish General Franciszek Dzierżykraj-Morawski (1783-1861), a poet, translator, participant of the Napoleonic wars, Minister of War during the November Uprising. Morawski received this order from Tsar Alexander I for his services to the imperial throne (before 1825). The Order Cross was usually worn around the neck, on a ribbon of red moiré with yellow stripes around the edges, which passed through a flattened ring. This decoration can be seen in the portrait of the General at the button-up, as he has the Order of St. Vladimir of the 3rd Class hanging around his neck (picture in the collection of the Polish Army Museum). The presented specimen is very decorative despite the schematic representation of the figure of Saint Anne and the damage (a fragment of the openwork ornament and several mountain crystals are missing). Due to the lack of a signature, it is not known where it was made.

Genowefa Horoszko