slava1stclass

Gents,

  Score one for metal detecting.  This OGII, OGIII, BM and Defense of Moscow medal group was found within the past six months just outside Rathenow, Germany (Brandenburg state).  It was located under a tree in a forest.

  The group belonged to Full Cavalier Corporal Sergey L. Vyatkin.  He was a reconnaissance scout/forward observer assigned to the 432nd Howitzer Artillery Regiment (1st Belorussian Front) when recommended and approved for his OGI on March 24, 1945.  Vyatkin survived the war and died in 1986.  How his orders and medals came to be located under that tree is unclear.  

Regards,

slava1stclass

 

Another great set to Александр Семёнович Писклов :-)

 

Gents,

  Five days prior to his OGI being approved on June 29, 1945, Senior Sergeant Писклов (Pisklov) marched in the historic June 24, 1945, Victory Parade on Red Square, Moscow.  He marched in the 1st Ukrainian Front's formation.  As addressed in my book, he numbers among the relatively few Full Cavaliers who marched in the Victory Parade.  This fact certainly adds another unique dimension to this set.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎11‎/‎30‎/‎2017 at 10:47, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

  Currently available for sale on a dealer's site.  This exceptionally pristine OGI was issued close to 25 years after the war ended to replace an erroneously-issued second OGIII to the same soldier.  The recipient was a corporal assigned to a rifle regiment with duties as a rifleman and later submachine gunner.  He was also awarded the ORS and two BMs during the war.

  Price:  $9,495.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Price was lowered $505.00 and is currently set at $8,990.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎12‎/‎29‎/‎2017 at 13:44, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

  It's that time of year once again - "The New York Sale" auction is scheduled for January 9-11, 2018.  This year's auction includes one Full Cavalier set to a Guards Junior Sergeant T-34 tank mechanic-driver.  He was erroneously awarded three OGIIIs during the war.  On August 19, 1955, two of his three OGIIIs were amended to an OGII and an OGI and he officially attained Full Cavalier status - 10 years after the war ended.  He was also awarded a BM during the war. 

  Full Cavalier sets to tank crew members are far and few between.  The opening bid is set at $12,500.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Interestingly, this set did not sell or was pulled from the auction at some point.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  This well-worn OGII to a Full Cavalier is currently available for sale in the former Soyuz.  You can detect just the faintest traces of gilding on the central medallion.  The Full Cavalier was a junior sergeant 45mm anti-tank gun gunner assigned to a rifle regiment.

  Sadly, this is another example of a Full Cavalier set being broken up with little regard to preserving the complete set of three decorations.  This set's OGI was on the market as a stand-alone piece within the past five years.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎8‎/‎13‎/‎2017 at 14:20, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

  This very nice Full Cavalier set includes the Full Cavalier booklet.  It is offered for sale in the former Soyuz.  At the current exchange rate, the asking price is $22,879.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎8‎/‎15‎/‎2017 at 11:27, Christian Zulus said:

Gentlemen,

this fine cavalier's set above seems to have at least a "normal" asking price :-)

Any more details or citations?

Kind regards

Christian

Christian,

  He was a rifleman serving as a private in a rifle regiment/division subordinate to the 69th Army.  His final OG was awarded in late April 1945 for action during the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation.  Awarded an OGII and two OGIIIs during the war, his second OGIII was amended to an OGI in 1951 at which time he attained Full Cavalier status.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  It's that time of year once again - "The New York Sale" auction is scheduled for January 9-11, 2018.  This year's auction includes one Full Cavalier set to a Guards Junior Sergeant T-34 tank mechanic-driver.  He was erroneously awarded three OGIIIs during the war.  On August 19, 1955, two of his three OGIIIs were amended to an OGII and an OGI and he officially attained Full Cavalier status - 10 years after the war ended.  He was also awarded a BM during the war. 

  Full Cavalier sets to tank crew members are far and few between.  The opening bid is set at $12,500.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  This OGI to a Full Cavalier recently sold in the former Soyuz for $8,500.00.  He was a senior sergeant artillery gun crew commander assigned to an artillery regiment in a rifle division.  His OGI was awarded for valor in combat in Poland in late winter/early spring 1945.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Until happening upon these images, I had not realized the Russian Federation Armed Forces had reintroduced the wound stripe.

  HRF Senior Praporshchik Grigoriy S. Kirichenko wears the gold wound stripe (severe wound) and HRF Lt Colonel Alexandr L. Sterzhantov wears the red wound stripe (light wound).  Each was awarded the Hero of the Russian Federation title (June 21, 1995, and September 25, 1999, respectively) for action against Chechen insurgents in the North Caucasus.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎4‎/‎30‎/‎2017 at 15:51, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

  The presentation ceremony occurred on May 12, 1945, at the airport/airfield in Linz, Austria. Soldiers from the U.S. Army's 65th Infantry Division provided the honor guard.  General Patton presented Lt Gen N. D. Zakhvatayev, Commander, 4th Guards Army, with the Legion of Merit (LM) in the degree of Commander.  He also presented lower degree LMs to 12 other Red Army personnel. There is also a report Patton awarded some Bronze Star Medals to Red Army personnel that day.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Another great photograph from the May 12, 1945, award ceremony - it's the first time I've seen this image.  In this picture, GEN Patton presents Lt Gen Zakhvatayev with a U.S Third Army unit flag.  This photograph recently sold on the well-known auction site for $49.95.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎12‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 17:01, Ferdinand said:

 I'm still amazed sometimes at how much information can be found online nowadays. The research for some of my award groups and single awards comprises no less than hundreds of pages, all found by digging through that treasure trove. 

Ferdinand,

  Your above comment is certainly spot on.  Huge credit to the Russian Ministry of Defense and other entities for the monumental feat of bringing to light primary source material that otherwise would have been too difficult for most to access.  Credit, too, to the web-design team responsible for the database search tools which allow for tailored, precise and rapid queries.  I've found very few instances of incorrect data input (resulting in bad search results) as they built/loaded the site e.g., actual NL on podvig is for a BM, however, the podvig web page graphics/info for that award indicate it's for a CSM.    

  My only wish is that the powers to be would finally include all the NLs for the 15 MAY 46 PSS decree - in my case for the Full Cavaliers of the Order of Glory.  While HSU NLs associated with the 15 MAY 46 decree are available on podvig (based on the official awarding stamp on these HSU NLs' reverse side), those for the Full Cavaliers approved via the 15 MAY 46 PSS decree are not.  I find this odd especially considering the fact other post-1945 PSS decrees e.g., for wound awards, are available.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  In response to many requests, my book is now also available in paperback:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/197349860X?ref_=pe_870760_150889320

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Currently available for sale on a dealer's site.  This exceptionally pristine OGI was issued close to 25 years after the war ended to replace an erroneously-issued second OGIII to the same soldier.  The recipient was a corporal assigned to a rifle regiment with duties as a rifleman and later submachine gunner.  He was also awarded the ORS and two BMs during the war.

  Price:  $9,495.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  This image is from a set of 15 photographs currently for sale on the well-known auction site.  They depict a reciprocal award ceremony and reception involving the United States Army 80th Infantry Division and an unknown Soviet unit in Liezen, Austria in mid-May 1945.

  In this image MG Horace L. McBride, Commanding General, 80th Infantry Division, is seen wearing both the Order of Aleksandr Nevskiy and an unknown class of the Order of the Patriotic War on his uniform jacket's right pocket flap.  The unidentified Soviet Major General wears the Legion of Merit in the degree of Legionnaire (confirmed via a separate photograph) although it is difficult to discern in this image.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  These two images are from a set of 15 photographs currently for sale on the well-known auction site.  They depict a reciprocal award ceremony and reception involving the United States Army 80th Infantry Division and an unidentified Soviet unit in Liezen, Austria in mid-May 1945.

  The first image depicts two Soviet officers at the post-award ceremony reception who had been awarded the U.S. Army Bronze Star Medal.

  The second image is a first for me.  The Soviet female lieutenant wears the U.S. Army Combat Infantryman Badge below her Bravery Medal.  Clearly this resulted from a soldier-to-soldier token badge swap and was not officially awarded.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Another "seven striper."  Picture dates to July 5, 1945.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Currently available at auction in the former Soyuz.  Order of Glory awards to aviation personnel tend to command a premium - even more so in cases of double awards let alone those to Full Cavaliers.  

  Senior Sergeant N. Ya. Pavlenko was an IL-2 Shturmovik aerial gunner.  He was awarded the OPWII, OGII and OGIII.  He was credited with two confirmed shoot downs - a Fw-190 (cited in his OGIII recommendation) and a Me-109 (cited in his OPWII recommendation).  He flew with the 637th Assault (Ground-attack) Aviation Regiment, 227th Assault Aviation Division. 

  The current high bid for this low serial number set is approximately $675.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  An extremely crisp image of the U.S. Army Bronze Star Medal awarded to Guards Captain V. P. Kuzyukov.  During the war, Kuzyukov commanded the 101st Guards Independent Reconnaissance Company assigned to the 98th Guards Rifle Division.  The division participated in the Vienna and Prague operations and was subordinate to the 3rd Ukrainian Front.  Kuzyukov's Bronze Star Medal likely resulted from a reciprocal field award presentation as U.S. and Soviet forces linked up in Czechoslovakia at war's end.

Kozyukhov's sole Soviet decoration was the OPWII.  At the time this photograph was taken (August 1946), the 98th Guards Rifle Division had converted to/been redesignated the 98th Guards Airborne Division.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎10‎/‎15‎/‎2017 at 12:41, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

   This Order of Bogdan Khmelnitskiy III Class was awarded to a Full Cavalier of the Order of Glory.  It is currently at auction in the former Soyuz.  At the moment, the high bid stands at $2,445.00.

  In general, the OBKIII was infrequently awarded to enlisted men during the war.  That said, only a handful of Full Cavaliers were recipients. 

  The real takeaway, however, is that any orders and medals awarded to Full Cavaliers (beyond their three OGs) tend to command a premium.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  In the end, it sold in the $2,600.00 to $3,000.00 range.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  I have come across a reference to two Moroccan decorations that were allegedly awarded to an American Medal of Honor recipient during WWI.  He was a sergeant assigned to the 1st Division.  The only information I have to work with is the following, "Recognition by the Moroccan Government, two medals, Senior and Junior."

  Might anyone venture a guess as to which medal(s) might be referred to here?  Thank you.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

   This Order of Bogdan Khmelnitskiy III Class was awarded to a Full Cavalier of the Order of Glory.  It is currently at auction in the former Soyuz.  At the moment, the high bid stands at $2,445.00.

  In general, the OBKIII was infrequently awarded to enlisted men during the war.  That said, only a handful of Full Cavaliers were recipients. 

  The real takeaway, however, is that any orders and medals awarded to Full Cavaliers (beyond their three OGs) tend to command a premium.

Regards,

slava1stclass

18 minutes ago, peter monahan said:

Interesting!  We tend to assume that men wearing medals to which they're not entitled are complete fakes, I think.  If what you say is accurate, this fellow was a genuine hero with multpile awards who still felt it necessary to gild the lily!  May one enquire who he was?

Peter,

  Your characterization, "...this fellow was a genuine hero with multpile awards who still felt it necessary to gild the lily!" is spot on.  For some guys, there is never enough.

  See these for more on him:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_R._Edwards

http://digital.lib.uiowa.edu/cdm/ref/collection/tc/id/53223

Regards,

slava1stclass

18 hours ago, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

  Request your assistance in identifying two decorations on the attached image.  First, the fifth decoration on the top row (to the right of the Medaille militaire as you view the image) and then the first decoration on the second row (to the left of the Italian War Cross as you view the image).  Thank you.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  After a bit of digging, I have some possible candidates.  None of them makes sense.  When reading about the recipient's personality and his oversized braggadocio, however, I guess I shouldn't be surprised.  His very dubious entitlement to the British MC is yet another indicator.

  It appears the first medal in question is either the Belgian King Albert Medal or the Belgian Political Prisoner's Medal 1914-1918.  In this same vein, the unidentified cross in the second row may well be the Belgian Civic Decoration 1914-1918.  I've attached images of all three for your review/comparison.

  Again, he is a legitimate WWI Medal of Honor, DSC, Silver Star and Purple Heart (w/ 1OLC) recipient.  The French Legion of Honor, French Croix de guerre with bronze palm, Belgian Croix de guerre with bronze palm, Italian War Cross and Montenegrin Medal for Military Bravery all also appear legit based on his WWI service.  The French Medaille militaire I'm less certain of.

Regards,

slava1stclass    

Gents,

  Request your assistance in identifying two decorations on the attached image.  First, the fifth decoration on the top row (to the right of the Medaille militaire as you view the image) and then the first decoration on the second row (to the left of the Italian War Cross as you view the image).  Thank you.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Revisiting this thread. 

  From the attached excellent image (note the 2nd Infantry Division insignia on his helmet)  one may discern he was awarded three Croix de Guerre based on the two bronze palms and one star on the suspension ribbon.  To assist us in further determining what he's wearing in the earlier bemedalled pictures, I offer the following.  These excerpts are from James Marie Hopper's book, " Medals of Honor" with illustrations by John Alan Maxwell published in 1929.

"Now and then Louis Van Iersel is asked by some organization to come in his uniform as an example to the young.  He slips on his old uniform, and on it spreads his medals.  What medals?  First he places around his neck the Congressional Medal of Honor.  Then he pins on his breast a Croix de Guerre with star, a Croix de Guerre with palm, a Medaille Militaire, an Italian Merito di Guerra, a Montenegrin War Cross.  And beneath these he attaches the medal of the King of England for rescue at sea, and the medal of the New York Life Saving Benevolent Association for rescue at sea."

  ErikMuller's above reference to the Sea Gallantry Medal is further supported with this excerpt:

"On February 2, 1917, while an able seaman on the Olaf Mearks, a Danish freighter bound from Copenhagen to New York, he spotted at night four red lanterns.  The freighter was turned toward this distress signal, and at dawn found the schooner English Secret, torpedoed and sinking in the heavy seas, with five men of the crew of sixteen still clinging on.  Louis, with two comrades, volunteered to man a boat in the cold heavy seas.  They saved the English sailors and the King of England gave Ludovicus a medal and five pounds in gold, and the Life Saving Benevolent Association of New York gave him a medal. All this before Ludovicus went to war"

The below information was found in the book, "History of Passaic and Its Environs. Volume III" by William W. Scott published in 1922: 

"1. Congressional Medal of Honor, November 9, 1918.  2. Medaille Militaire, November 9, 1918.  3. Croix de Guerre with palm, Soissons, July 18, 1918.  4. Croix de Guerre with palm, Champagne, August 19, 1918.  5. Croix rle Guerre with silver star, St. Mihiel, September 18, 1918.  6. Montenegro Medal, Paris, July, 1919.  7. Life Saving Medal from England, February 2, 1917.  8. Life Saving Medal from New York, February 2, 1917.  9. Medal from Governor Edwards, June, 1920.  10. State Medal.  11. Medal from Paterson for enlistment.  12. Honorary member Spanish American War Veterans.  13. French Fourragere, 2nd Division, 9th Infantry." 

 FWIW, van Iersel is also believed to be the first non-U.S. citizen to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

Regards,

slava1stclass