Alfred

A short guideline through the history of the excellent badges: 1. Excellent serviceman of the RKKA This badge was founded at 14. November 1939 from the council of people commissars. There are two versions of the badge. 1. with s/n smooth surface backside 2. without s/n mirror backside highest observed s/n 21.558 The badge was given to soldiers, political workers, commanders and other leadership persons. It was given for best results in political work, combat training and good discipline. 2. Excellent badges WW II There are 24 different excellent badges. They were founded by the Supreme Soviet of the UdSSR. (1942-1947) These badges were given to soldiers and NCO?s of the different branches of the army, navy and air force. They has been worn on the right side of the uniform. These excellent badges has been awarded after the sucess of an education/training year and respectively after a sucessfull ending of an seminar/training course. For some excellent badges the recipant have to solve shooting taks with specified results. (like sniper, machine-gunner, artilleryman..). For other badges like excellent cook the recipant had to perform best services in excellent cooking, to comply work hygiene, to deal savly with the material) and so on..... Dates of issue: 21.05.1942: excellent sniper excellent artillery man excellent tanker excellent mortar man excellent maschine gunner excellent torpedo artificer excellent submariner 19.08.1942: excellent sapper excellent mine-layer 04.11.1942: excellent medical service 21.12.1942: excellent serviceman railroad troops 10.03.1943: excellent scout 03.04.1943: excellent signaller 05.04.1943: excellent pontonier 30.04.1943: excellent serviceman anti aircraft 08.07.1943: excellent cook excellent baker excellent driver excellent road worker 10.09.1943: excellent tractor driver 10.06.1947: excellent sniper 3. Excellent badges 1957 In April 1957 the minister of defence established 3 new excellent badges. One for the army, one for the air force and one for the navy. They replaced the 24 different excellent badges. 3 dates from excellent badges are missing. Help needed! excellent fireman excellent aviation experts (2 varations) remark: the excellent fireman badge was the only badge which was further awarded after 1957 when the excellent badges were replaced by the three badges.

An first attempt to classify the military railroad badges: 1st version: small silver one bestowed 1. Oktober 1934 - possible charge 4.200 lowest number observed: 1.748 highest number observed: 4.177 s/n 1 - 1. October 1934 2nd version (silver variant): large silver one (STALIN) bestowed 1935? - possible charge 8.000 lowest number observed: 5.282 highest number observed: 11.877 s/n 5.282 - 16. January 1938 s/n 6.251 - 12. October 1941 2nd version (brass variant): large brass one (STALIN) bestowed 1940? - possible charge 100.000 lowest number observed: 12.422 highest number observed: 111.591 s/n 30.566 - "1944" s/n 40.477 - 2. October 1944 s/n 66.580 - pre-March 1946 "NKPS" screw nut s/n 69.317 - 1946 but can't read date from tiny book, but "MPS" stamp s/n 106.771 - 29. May 1957 (1957 likely 99%) Maybe they stopped to award the stalin version (2nd version) short after the secret speech of Chrustchow at the XX party congress at the end of 1956. To stop the personal cult around Stalin. 3rd version : red suspension bestowed ? - possible charge ? lowest number observed: 112.050 highest number observed: 135.164 s/n 128.808 - 25. February 1974 remarks to 3rd version: I think there are two variants: one with a more green and one with a more blue coloured enamel at the trolley -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Any other dates and comments are welcome!

another date: number 106.771 - 29. May 1957 (perhaps 1951 - have only a bad picture collected a log time ago on the internet) brass badge type

Rick, one more date to complete the time-table. regards Andreas Number 5.282 - 16.01.1938 silver type with two screwplates (sadly it?s not mine, I only have a picture)

Rick, If I remember right they allready have started to fake the dovetails. I think, in another forum they have posted a faked dovetail. Unfaked soviet awards are getting rare. regards Andreas

Dietrich, complete my previous post regards Andreas picture follow later if necessary

Hello Rick, to edit post number 1 found an order book with 1947*-"Г": without photo but with a place for a photo, with black Soviet state seal on cover (*1947 date last page) middle quality bright red booklett, (Valiant Labour Medal awarded 10.05.1951 without s/n) 1966*-"Ж": with photo, with black Soviet state seal on cover (*1966 date last page) middle quality bright red booklett, (Distinguished Labour Medal awarded 5.11.1967 without s/n) 1967*-"З": without photo but with a place for a photo, with gold Soviet state seal on cover, (*1967 date last page) better quality dark red booklett, (Order Red Banner of Labour awarded 8.12.1973 s/n 885.020) 1991*-"M": without photo and without a place for a photo, with gold Soviet state seal on cover, nice quality booklett (*23.02.1991 date of award, Order of Oktober Revolution Nr.: 102.560) regards Andreas

From a member of another forum I got an answer to post 1: Hello Andreas!!! It is a badge a version of the red commander. Was many types of this badge.The army could not provide all with it badge. Therefore many commanders personally ordered this badge in workshops. They asked to add the jeweller any element. The rules was not.Existed badges with artillery guns. Such badge too were ordered personally. Were made either in bronze or in silver.

Here is the web-adress of an online-translator http://www.worldlingo.com/

The regions of the Soviet Union: 1. Armenia 2. Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh Nakhichevan 3. Belarus Brest Region Gomel Region Grodno Region Minsk City Minsk Region Mogilyov Region Vitebsk Region 4. Estonia 5. Georgia Abkhazia Adjaria South Ossetia 6. Kyrgyzstan Issyk-Kul Naryn Region Osh Region 7. Kazakhstan Aktyubinsk Region Alma-Ata City Alma-Ata Region Chimkent Region Dzhambul Region Dzhezkazgan Region East Kazakhstan Guryev Region Karaganda Region Kokchetav Region Kustanay Region Kzyl-Orda Region Mangyshlak North Kazakhstan Pavlodar Region Semipalatinsk Region Taldy-Kurgan Region Tselinograd Region Turgay Uralsk Region 8. Lithuania 9. Latvia 10. Moldavia 11. Russia Adygeya Aghin Buriatia Altay Territory Amur Region Arkhangelsk Region Astrakhan Region Bashkiria Belgorod Region Bryansk Region Buriatia Checheno-Ingushia Chelyabinsk Region Chita Region Chukchia Chuvashia Daghestan Evenkia Gorkiy Region Gorny Altay Irkutsk Region Ivanovo Region Jewish Autonomous Region Kabard-Balkaria Kalinin Region Kaliningrad Region Kalmykia Kaluga Region Kamchatka Region Karachay-Cherkessia Karelia Kemerovo Region Khabarovsk Territory Khakassia Khantia-Mansia Kirov Region Komia Koryakia Kostroma Region Krasnodar Territory Krasnoyarsk Territory Kurgan Region Kursk Region Kuybyshev Region Leningrad City Leningrad Region Lipetsk Region Magadan Region Maritime Territory Mariy-El Mordovia Moscow City Moscow Region Murmansk Region Nenetsia North Ossetia Novgorod Region Novosibirsk Region Omsk Region Orenburg Region Oryol Region Penza Region Perm Region Perm?s Komia Pskov Region Rostov Region Ryazan Region Sakhalin Region Saratov Region Smolensk Region Stavropol Territory Sverdlovsk Region Tambov Region Tataria (or Tartary) Taymyria Tomsk Region Tula Region Tuva Tyumen Region Udmurtia Ulyanovsk Region Ust-Ord Buriatia Vladimir Region Volgograd Region Vologda Region Voronezh Region Yakutia Yamal Nenetsia Yaroslavl Region 12. Tajikistan Gorno-Badakhshan Kulyab Region Kurgan-Tyube Region Leninabad Region 13. Turkmenistan Ashkhabad City Ashkhabad Region Chardzhou Region Krasnovodsk Region Mary Region Tashauz Region 14. Ukraine Cherkassy Region Chernigov Region Chernovtsy Region Crimea Dnepropetrovsk Region Donetsk Region Ivano-Frankovsk Region Kharkov Region Kherson Region Khmelnitskiy Region Kiev City Kiev Region Kirovgrad Region Lvov Region Nikolaev Region Odessa Region Poltava Region Rovno Region Sevastopol City Sumy Region Ternopol Region Transcarpathia Vinnitsa Region Volynia Voroshilovgrad Region Zaporozhe Region Zhitomir Region 15. Uzbekistan Andizhan Region Bukhara Region Dzhizak Region Fergana Region Karakalpakia Kashkadarya Region Khorezm Namangan Region Navoiysk Region Samarkand Region Surkhandarya Region Syrdarya Region Tashkent City Tashkent Region Some earlierly abolished entities: - Bukhara - Khiva - Transcaucasia - Volga German ASSR (within the RSFSR) - Far East (within the RSFSR)

Hi Gerd, have a look in your mail box best regards Andreas

Yes, I got the mail-packet today delivered. I found it on ebay Italy, from a german seller. Which visor-cap fit to the jacket? A normal MGB one? regards Andreas

and a close up of the shoulder boards

and the picture off the full jacket

Hello, found this jacket "for a good price "on the worlds favourite auction side. I think, it is a 1951/1953 MGB jacket for a LtColonel. I think most likely the guy was in the legal/justice department/brach of the MGB. See the shoulder boards. (shield with two swords) The shoulder boards are sewed inside the jacket with a white pack twine. The collar and cuffs are made out of gold plated metal on blue cloth. 1946 ? 1954 MGB (Ministerstwo Gossudarstwennoi Besopasnosti) 1954 - 1991 KGB (Komitet Gossudarstwennoi Besopasnosti) Two front buttons are marked with 1951 and the rest with 1953. There is no stamp/marker inside the jacket. One button inside the jacket is marked with: Moscow Moscwa Tamp Which visor cap/hat would fit to this jacket. Has anybody a picture? Is this a victory parade jacket or a service uniform? Any comments/oppinions are appreciated. best regards Andreas

Oh, the lucky awarded is laughing in the coal cellar. Bad luck Gerd , that the picture is so dark, maybe next time you have more luck. best regards Andreas

Nice Red Star received he other awards, was there a foto of the lucky owner? regards Andreas

Here is a Red Army breast badge badge from the book Soviet Military Uniform and Insignia 1918-58

and the front of the badge.

Here is another badge, same quality as the badge before. But no mint marks on the badge. Looks like a variation of the Red Army breast badge for soldier or officers. It was introduced by the RRMC (Republics Revolutionary Military Council) to emphasize the menbersjip in the Red Army, because the were a diversity of troops uniforms in the Red Army.

looks like С.О.б.

Hello Rick, there are 3 mint marks at the bottom part of the badge. The left one are two letter "DO", the right one is a "women head 84" and the mark at the top I can?t really see clear what it is. I think the "women head 84" is a silver mint mark, used from moscow mint before 1927. Same mark as the attached picture. The "signs" at the srew looks like letters. best regards Andreas

Hello gents, any closer thoughts to this badge. I was not able to find this badge in any of my reference books. I think it is a kind of red commanders course badge close after civil war, or a graduate badge of a military school. But which school? I think we can exclude agriculture. best regards Andreas

Hello Rick, I have looked on the mondvor side. They list for these variation T2 V2 SubVar2 the s/n 481 minimal and maximal 1185 with Mondvor stamp. Разновидность 2. Клеймо расположено выше серийного номера. Минимальный известный номер ордена ? 481, максимальный ? 1185. Alexei is nearly sure that the order is okay. In Paul Mc Daniels book is a 2nd award screwback with s/n 1267 with Monetny Dvor stamp. Maybe it is just the boarder line. By the way, mondvor says, that the lowest observed serial number for a monetny dvor stamped piece is 1267. I had the purpose to send the order for authentification to Paul, but he is till January in Afganistan. best regards Andreas

and the backside