Ferdinand

That's what I suspected. Thanks for checking, Slava.

Can we see the page with the name of the recipient? I must say I'm not wild about the entries.

Theoretically, yes, but the system of awarding regular orders and medals for long service was abolished in early 1957, so had he still been serving after 30 years, he would have received nothing but a pat on the back.

Apparently he served in the army from November 1931 to August 1953 - almost 22 years - so three more years and he would have been given a Lenin.

I certainly wouldn't call it an unmitigated disaster, their estimates were simply way too high. A late wartime OPW2 is just not worth £180-240 (including the buyer's premium), but barely half that. The few lots that did sell show that the results were not bad at all. The late-war ORB for instance sold for £180, which is the same it would have sold for anywhere else, and the OG3+MC set went for a very respectable £192.

Obviously the paper is damaged, no question about that, but I honestly don't think there's anything wrong with the entry.

Really, it's an original one  The enamel and the silver do show some wear, which does affect its value somewhat, but it's not that bad. It's probably a combat award, but there is a chance that it's a long service award.

If you search for "soviet suspension" on eBay you'll find a few sellers who sell suspensions - the aluminum version, mostly - in quantity.

Bear in mind that these serial numbers were engraved by hand, so minute differences are unavoidable. The 9's in the five images above are all slightly different, but I would still say that they are part of the same family, as is the one in the first post.

Here you go, five similar numbers...

The serial number - 94196 - is textbook, there's nothing wrong with it.

50 minutes ago, Egorka said:

Don't you think it's suspicious that exactly the area around the number happens to be washed out? And with a weird paper damage, which is difficult to explain by natural wear and tear?

No, I don't think it is. The number itself looks as it should, and I don't see any traces of an old serial number or those giveaway watery stains that you usually see.

I don't think anything was doctored here.

I would be very surprised if a bullet is able to create such a perfectly round and centered hole, let alone in a combat situation.

I'm sure that if you look at any random person's signature over an eight-year period you're going to see minor evolvement. It's perfectly natural. I wouldn't call these "styles".

This HSU star is in the collection of a fellow forum member. Both the star and the certificate are completely original.

The name seems to be 'Vlashin' (Влашинъ).

I agree. 1500-1800 dollars would be a realistic estimate I think.

There is, but not without spending a bit of money 

Looking at the visual characteristics of the Red Star, it seems to be a variant with a serial number in the 3.7 or even 3.8 million range. Plus, from a chronological point of view too a serial number in the 3.5 million range would be highly unusual, as RedMaestro stated, since all 3.5 mil Red Stars were awarded in the 1950s and 1960s, the latest having been awarded in 1967 according to my files.

Having said that, I think everything looks as it should. I have a virtually complete database of all Armed Forces decrees and I'm not aware of a March 28, 1978 decree, so that might suggest he served in a state security capacity.

His name is Abbas ogly Allakhverdy. Sounds Azerbaijani.

Afghanistan Red Stars start at around $100-150, but since you have the award book, other awards belonging to the same recipient, and background info, this one may be worth a bit more. Its condition is also a fairly important factor.

I believe I discern some light enamel damage... I only want one in mint condition 

It was discussed on the Faleristika forum and they believe it's the real deal 

Captain Nizov served as assistant chief of staff for reconnaissance of the 911th Rifle Regiment. In February 1943 his scouts detected a large concentration of enemy infantry tanks in the regiment's area of operations and Nizov's timely report enabled the regiment to take up defensive positions and prepare itself to repel the attack. During the fighting for another village his scouts once again provided intelligence about the location of the enemy.