so is the history of that mosin any different than any other mosin? how is its history any better than any rifle at the cmp? i have a ww2 mosin as well and its only worth 100. i wonder if simos rifle is worth more since it has a history behind it. 505 pages of history to be exact.
Ok Danthman, a little history lesson.
Prior to 1917, Finland was a part of Russia and the Tsar ruled as the Grand Duke of Finland. After Russia's Bolshevik Revolution of November 1917, Finnish Bolsheviks seized power in Helsinki and Southern Finland. A brutal Red(communist)/White(royalist/democratic) civil war broke out immediately. The White Guard anti communist forces were organized and commanded by Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim (1867-1951), a Finnish aristocrat and former tsarist general. His troops were largely trained by German soldiers, (and included a few German troops) and in fierce fighting Mannerheim largely crushed the communists by mid 1918, although sporadic fighting went on until 1920. Finland maintained a precarious independence until the Soviets grew strong enough to trample it in the Winter War of 1939-40 which began with a sneak attack on Helsinki by Russian bombers on November 30, 1939.
Finland's new army and civil guard were armed with whatever weapons were in tsarist imperial arsenals in Finland when the civil war broke out, they also received Mosin Nagants from Germany after World War I ended.
This rifle is from one of the early up grade programs of these surplus Mosin Nagants by Finland. It was up graded in 1919-1920 at the Soumen Ampumatarvikkeetehdas (Finnish Ammunition Factory) at Riimaki which manufactured the barrel that is marked SAT in a circle. Only approx 200 of these barrels were made. Finland would later buy 18,000 barrels from German manufactures, they would not be able to mass produce barrels until much later.
The above info is from Terence lapin's book, " The Mosin Nagant"
So what you have in this rifle is a neat bit of history from the very early days of Modern Finnish Independence, it really is amazing given the events of the 20th century that this rifle surived!
It's value to some is priceless, to others it is just another Mosin Nagant M91 Infantry Rifle. But just think of if it could tell you of the stories of the events that it witnessed, it has transcended from a firearm to an object of history and the story of the Finnish Peoples struggle against Russia and later the Soviet Union.
Is it worth $12,500? To you and I, no. But to those that bid on it and to the future owners, yes.
