The Insignia of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav
The versions of * 1860 * 1882 * 1906 * 1937 * 1942 * 1958 *
1860 Grand Cross Star - click on image for more detail
1873 Commander Star - click on image for more detail
1860 Grand Cross / Commander Civil Badge - click on image for more detail
1860 Grand Cross / Commander Military Badge - click on image for more detail
1906 Grand Cross Star - click on image for more detail.
1906 Commander Star - click on image for more detail.
1906 Grand Cross / Commander Civil Badge
1906 Grand Cross Badge and Star
A Very Nice Private Collection!
Two Grand Cross Military sets complete with Sash in cases of issue (to the left no. 1 - 1937 Grand Cross in gold and no. 2 - 1957 Grand Cross in silver gilt) followed by two versions of the 1906 Commander with Star (one Military and one Civil) with Neck Ribbons in cases of issue.
The Badges used for both the Grand Cross and the Commander Class are identical. The only differences between the two classes are the Stars and the ribbons with a Sash for the Grand Cross and a Neck Ribbon for the Commander.
Lord Chamberlain "Kansellisjef" Egil Vindorum with the Royal Collection
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Commander 1860 - 1881 in gold by Carlman, Stockholm. HM King Carl IV
Knight Class I 1882 - 1905 in gold by J. Tostrup, Kristiania (Oslo). HM King Oscar II
Grand Cross Badge 1906 -1936 in gold by J. Tostrup, Kristiania (Oslo). HM King Haakon VII
Grand Cross Badge in gold from 1937 -1957 by J. Tostrup, Oslo. King Haakon VII and King Olav V
1937 Grand Cross Civil Division in gold. (From a private USA collection)
St Olav 1860 - 2004 (Click for more detail)
150 years of St Olav insignia. (Click for more detail).
1942-1945 WW II version in silver gilt by Spink & Son Ltd., London, England
WW II - 1941 St Olav Insignia by Spink & Son, Ltd. in London, England
On December 1, 1941 at the time of the German occupation of Norway, the Chancery of St. Olav placed an order for insignia to be made by Spink & Son, Ltd. in London. The Badge was made of silvergilt and enamel and the suspension loop was hallmarked "Spink & Son, Ltd". It was officially not issued with swords, despite being awarded during WW II. The badge is smaller compared to the Norwegian made 1937 issue in gold. The width of the crown is also slightly more narrow than the 1937 issue. One Knight Class 1 reportedly exists with two crossed swords in blue enamel under the crown but it is believed to have been added on by Court Jeweler J. Tostrup in Oslo after the end of WW II.
St. Olav manufactured by Spink & Son, Ltd. during WW II for the Chancellor
Grand Cross Badge and Star 12 sets - 4 in private collection
Commander with Star (Class 1) 17 sets - 2 in private collection
Commander Class 2 31 sets - 3 in private collection
Knight Class 1 52 sets - 4 in private collection
Knight Class 2 6 sets - 0 in private collection
After the end of WW II in 1945, the insignia of the Order of St. Olav was once again manufactured by Court Jeweler J. Tostrup in Oslo, Norway.
St Olav COmmander 2 by Spink & Son, London 1942
WW II Commander by Spink & Son, London
St Olav Commander WW II
made by Spink & Son, London
The Commander badge is made in two different sizes
Commander Class 1 and Class 2
Commander 1st class (same size as the Grand Cross Badge). Size: width = 61 mm, height = 87.6 mm. Manufacture: 17
Commander 2nd. class: Size width = 50.5 mm, height = 71.7 mm and weight = 40 grams. Manufacture: 31
Knight Size weight = 36.6 and height = 52.4 mm
All insignia are made in silvergilt and enamel. Hallmarket on the reverse of the suspension loop: "Spink & Son, London"
1942 Spink Grand Cross Badge (click on thumbnail to enlarge)
1942 Spink Grand Cross Star (click on thumbnail to enlarge)
Badge 1957 - today in silver gilt (vermeil) by J. Tostrup until 1993 and by David -Andersen, Oslo from 1994. King Olav V and King Harald V
Reverse of 1937 ver. with motto "Ret og Sandhed" Justice and Truth
King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway. The reigning king of Norway is the Grand Master of the Order of St. Olav. The Queen wearing the Dame Grand Cross with the more narrow sash (5 cm wide compared to the regular size of 10 cm for men). Click on thumbnails to the left for more detail.
Commander Ladies' Bow
A rare Commander Ladies' Bow for breast wear instead of the traditional neck ribbon normally used. Very few St. Olav awards have been bestowed to women and in particular for the higher classes.
Note the circular suspension ring, which has the "J. Tostrup 750" hallmark. The suspension ring is attached to the crown via a small second ring in order to obtain the correct angle. The commander badge is the 1937 type in gold.
(From a private Norwegian collection)
Grand Cross Ladies' Bow
A rare Grand Cross Ladies' Bow in silver gilt of the current style since 1957.
A section of the Collar 1906 - today in gold and enamel by J. Tostrup until 1993 and by David - Andersen, Oslo from 1994
The Collar
Instituted as a separate class in 1906 and made of gold and enamel. The Collar consists of 6 Crowned "O"s for Olav, 6 State Coats of Arms in red enamel with a golden lion, and 12 old Trondheim Archiepiscopal Insignia; a gold cross with trefoil ends and silver axes with gold shafts.
(click on the thumbnails below for enlarged images)
Measurements: Collar: 950mm; Cross: 53mm x 40 mm; the "O": 60 mm x 36 mm; Coat of Arms: 67 mm x 46 mm. Hallmark: J. Tostrup Kristiania
Image courtsey of The Royal Norwegian Court.
1906 St. Olav Collars in private ownership
Collars sold by Christie's in London
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Badge Military Division * 1860 * 1906 * 1958 *
Commander Military 1860 - 1881. King Carl IV
Grand Cross badge Military 1906 -1936. King Haakon VII
1957 Commander Civil - Current Style (From a private USA collection)
HM King Oscar II decided on March 17th, 1890 to divide the Knight of the Order into two classes. The new insignia for the Knight Class 2 was in silver instead of gold as for the Knight Class 1.
Knight Class 2 was only awarded to foreign nationals from 1890 until 1906. For the first time on November 20th, 1906 three Norwegians were awarded Knight Class 2 for their participation on Roald Amundsen's famous polar expeditions. Messers. Anton Lund, Helmer Julius Hanssen and Adolf Henrik Lindstrøm were awarded the Knight Class 2 of St. Olav for exceptional seamanship on the famous ship vessels "Gjoa" in 1903 -1906 discovering the North-West Passage and "Fram" in 1910 -1914 exploring Antartica with the subsequent conquest of the South Pole.
Knight Class 2 has rarely been bestowed despite being the lowest class. Only 45 Knight Class 2 was bestowed to Norwegians from 1906 until 1936 and only 16 from 1937 to 1947. The order was only awarded to men during this period. The Class 2 has not been awarded for the last 20 years and it is therefore considered to be a rare class of the Order. Foreign nationals have been bestowed the Knight Class 2 to a larger extent than Norwegians but still relatively few compared to the other classes of St. Olav.
Knight Class II 1906-1936 in 925S silver sterling (From a private USA collection)
Knight Class II reverse with the motto "Justice and Truth"
1906 Knight Class 1 in gold
1937 Knight Class 1 in gold
1957 Knight Class 1 in silver gilt
1906 and 1937 Grand Cross
1957 Grand Cross
1937 Commander w/Star
Commander Class II, 1957 version
Danish ribbon style
1937-1957
1937 - 1957 reverse side
Professor emeritus Jens Glad Balchen, 1996
King Oscar I
Award Diploma of St. Olav
1847 - 2005
The King normally signs all awards to Norwegians. For foreigners he only signs award diplomas for the higher classes starting with Commander. The awards signed by the Chancellor of the Order are normally Knight Class 1 and 2 to foreigners awarded prior to 1985.
(Click on images below for a larger image)
King Oscar I 1858 Commander Award
King Oscar I 1859 Knight Award
King Carl XV 1866 Knight Award
King Oscar II 1879 Knight Award
King Oscar II 1894 Knight 1 Award
King Oscar II 1894 Commander 1 Award.
King Haakon VII 1907 Knight 1 Award
King Haakon VII 1924 Knight 1 Award
King Haakon VII 1927 Commander 2 Award
King Haakon VII 1945 Commander 2 Award
1923 Grand Cross Award Diploma
Vidkun Quisling 1940-45 WW II Award unissued
King Olav V 1961 Commander 1 Award
King Olav V 1985 Knight 1 Award
King Harald V 2002 Knight 1 Award
Disclaimer: Please note that this is an informative for non-profit site presenting the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav, it's history, insignia and Grand Cross awards of the Order since the 1847 inception. Every effort is made to provide a high quality and accurate presentation, however webmaster is not responsible for any inaccuracies in the information presented or links to other sites. Please contact webmaster with any queries, updates or corrections. Thanks. - Armand Knutsen, Webmaster, 2006
Den Kongelige Norske St. Olavs Orden ble stiftet av Kong Oscar I i 1847, og tildeles som «belønning for utmerkede fortjenster av fedrelandet og menneskeheten». St. Olavs Orden er oppkalt etter Norges helgenkonge, Olav den Hellige, og er inndelt i fem grader: Storkors, Kommandør med Stjerne, Kommandør, Ridder av 1. klasse og Ridder. Til ordenen hører det også et Kjede som H.M. Kongen kan tildele innehavere av Storkorset - in Norwegian.
