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Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Photographs of Various Russian Timepieces
Review: A wonderful book showing the wide range of timepieces that theRussians produce, and which are now becoming available on the openmarket. Profusely illustrated and well documented. Includes a short, but very complete, table of cyrillic to english for the various markings one comes across. The only downside - buy two copies. The binding on mine fell apart from so much use. TAF
Rating: 
Summary: Introduction in contemporary Russian timepieces
Review: Between 1990 and present, there has been a tremendous surge in collecting Russian and Sovjet timepieces, especially in Europe. Still, complete and comprehensive documentation is elusive. So far, two authors have attempted to categorize and document the subject in books. The book by mr. Levenberg covers mostly the era from 1970 through present. Thereby, the highly interesting timeframe between the 30's and the 70's is overlooked, limiting the usefulness of the book to collectors of fairly recent pieces. If this is your area of interest, I would recommend you to purchase this book. First it is translated from German to English. Furthermore, the quality of the information is of acceptable level, but sometimes lacking interesting details. The horological information (mostly brands and calibers) covers the timeframe nicely. Additional information, e.g. Cyrillic translations are interesting extras for collectors. I have found the price guide to be unrealistically high when used at auctions or watch fairs, so use it with caution. If you are interested in a broader view on Russian and Sovjet Era (pre 1991) watches, I would recommend to also consider the 2 books in German language by mr. Ceyp. These hardcover, full color books document a wider scope. Volume 1 'Faszination Russische Uhren' covers about the same era as the book by mr. Levenberg but shows more detail, while volume 2 'Faszination Sovjetische Uhren' covers the less recent history in abundance. I would rate these books with 4*. Still, I have not found the the ultimate, definitive book on the subject Russian and Sovjet timepieces.
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