Chuck In Oregon

This badge commemorates the first Tiflis (Tbilisi) - Moscow flight, which took place from October 23-31, 1927. The one time I made that same trip I think it took me two hours or so, maybe a little longer. I imagine the flag badge was a stock item in a jeweler's atelier, purchased and engraved as needed. I have seen very few KKA badges (even fewer OKA) and fewer yet badges of the KKA air force. I'll look, but this may be my only one. KKA = Causasus Red Army. KKA would be an interesting field to collect -- IF you could ever find anything. Chuck

Here's another shot of the lad in post 18, along with a couple of friends or family members. Brother and sister, maybe? Chuck

Found this one as I was putting the last one away. I'm sure there are more. Chuck

Here's one I really like. These were easy to find in my junk piles. I'm sure I have some more around here somewhere. Chuck

As promised ... Here's the first one I came across. It's a photo postcard, so the angle is just a little stylin' at the photographer's studio. Chuck

* * * * * George, this is the best I could do. As you know, I am not very clever when it comes to anything digital ... or much else, really. Is that a button next to the upper right edge of the rhomb? Chuck

* * * * * Yes, I wondered how the "II" popped off. Guess we'll never know. And I'll be darned. It looks like my friend was right about the staff officer's badge. He's pretty knowledgeable, but I thought it was just a wild guess. I'll be sure to tell him he was right. Thanks, George. Chuck

* * * * * Now that you mention it, I think I've seen the second badge somewhere too, but also without the ribbon. I just can't put my finger on it right now. That makes some sense, as it would have been a lot easier and quicker than coming up with a new design. Chuck

Here's another orphan piece: Loose replacement ribbon and missing nut, too.

Here are three orphans that I had lying around. I have some others in groups, I think, but I'd have to look around for them.

And finally, here's the picture -- a photo postcard, blank area cropped -- that came with the group.

I believe this to be a badge of the 1st Caucasus Aviation Squadron (OKA). It's a lightweight little thing, only 6.44 grams without the screwback. I think it may have been silver-washed but I don't know the underlying metal. It's 4.3 cm from wingtip-to-wingtip and it's 3.6 cm high. Has anyone seen this one in a catalog? I haven't. Chuck

I just got back late Tuesday evening from a couple of months in the Caucasus. I'm still unpacking, but I wanted to start sharing a few things that I brought back. This small group came together and is said to be from one individual. Unfortunately, there are no accompanying documents, just the one photo with no aviation badges shown. I think that the badge he is wearing is a graduation badge from a school for infantry ensigns. I've got one of those around here somewhere. I believe this first badge to be a pilot-observer's badge. One of my friends has suggested an aviation unit -- maybe a scout-observer unit -- staff officer's badge. Perhaps he's right, I just don't know. I have previously shared another pilot-observer's badge here on the forum. This one has a gold-washed silver wreath and highlights. I believe that the insignia tself, which I thought at first to be silver, is actually some sort of blued steel or other non-precious metal with silver-washed wings. There are no markings on the insignia. The badge weighs 17.98 grams without the screwback and it's 4.9 cm from wingtip-to-wingtip by 4.3 cm from eyepiece to bottom of wreath. An 84 is clearly marked on the ring on the back, as is the maker's mark, Eduard. These pieces came from Tbilisi and Eduard had a shop in Tbilisi. I suspect the gilted silver wreath/ring is a standard shop item to which was affixed the desired insignia. As you look at the obverse, the left sword tip is slightly bent back. I don't see any other damage. There is minimal wear, with some to the highest rounded parts of the crown and a little to the high points of the wings. The post is uncut and the screwback appears to be original and it may be silver but it is unmarked. Enjoy. Chuck

George ... c'mon. You got that at a flea market? A FLEA MARKET??!! Man, you have better flea markets where you are than we have in Oregon. I never before wanted to move back to CA, but you're making me reconsider. You need a little competition, I think. NICE score. You're having a good week. So, you think that nickel fitting indicated special police? I have only visited our blades forum once or twice. I have I few assorted blades somewhere in my assorted piles of stuff. When I get home I'll try to remember (a chronic problem) to share a few images. BTW, your images are very good. Chuck Home in 27 days!

* * * * * Hi George Nice kinjal! I'm in Yerevan right now, back home in July. I spent the first couple of weeks of May in Tbilisi. I'm bringing back a lesser example kinjal (good ones like yours are getting really expensive and much harder to find), plus a few other things that you might enjoy. I've bringing home a couple of very early aviation badges that you may never have seen. Just last week here in Yerevan, after I'd pretty much given up on finding anything very good here, I bought a WW II cartographer's group earned by an Armenian woman, with all documents, including the 1944 folder for the cartographer's badge, which I had not seen before. Till then, Chuck

* * * * * Thank you for that interesting site and for starting this thread. Chuck

Thank you for sharing your collection. They are just terrific. I've been looking for several years and never found an original. Do you mean they were part of an exhibit which you later acquired? If so, I think you were very lucky. Lucky is good. Chuck

* * * * * Hello Sergey I'm just back from 3-1/2 hours wandering the Yerevan flea market and nearby shops. It is much bigger than the Dry Bridge flea market in Tbilisi but it had almost nothing that interested me in the least. The "best" thing I saw was a very nice (really) OPW-2 with a 1957 book. It would fit nicely into anyone's collection BUT ... the guy wanted $70. I have some and I think I can get all I want at $70 each, so I passed. There were a bunch of jubilee medals and all kinds of znachki but nothing of particular interest. I asked around about Tsarist items and one guy came up with a hat badge that I already have in better condition. I saw one OK OPW-1 in the 900k serial number range, without book. He wanted $350 and I just wasn't interested. He also had an OK OPW-2, no book, for $50. I didn't see a single interesting old Soviet badge, although there were hundreds of junk znachki of all sorts. OK, yes, I did buy something, and for more than it's worth, I'm sure. I couldn't turn down a 1984 commemorative stamp plate honoring the 30th anniversary of the Vietnamese victory at Dien Bien Phu, with a Hanoi cancellation, plus some associated Vietnamese war commemorative stamps. I'm such a sucker for oddball things like that. Maybe we need a stamp forum. Nah, probably not. I saw one stall with a bunch of truly horrible copies of old Soviet badges. I can't imagine why they'd bother to make them, but they do. I don't really have an opinion of Armenia, except that the people here have been very hospitable and pleasant and the drive here from Tbilisi last Tuesday was pleasant and pretty. As for the food, I may not have given it a fair chance yet. My initial impression is that I much prefer Georgian food, although even my Georgian friends told me that I would like Armeniian food. They tell me there was late cold here but the weather has been absolutely perfect every day I've been here. I'm working on a short-term contract for a USAID-funded project. It was unexpected and unsolicited -- I thought I had retired -- but it pays a few bills and for some collecting so I accepted. I have already turned down a residency here but I may return in September for a couple more months. It's only a little disturbing that my counterpart's predecessor was killed by a car bomb hit last fall. I can get a round-trip ticket to Teheran for $250 and the sister of a friend is willing to be my guide for 2-3 days. I'm mulling it over. I'll probably never again have as good a chance as this. I'll be glad to try to answer any questions that you may have, so ask away. Chuck

Hello Sov I have some great old photos at home. I'll try to remember to share some when I get back. I'm in Armenia right now and I was in Georgia for two weeks before. In fact, I'll be returning to Tbilisi before I go home in early July. I bought maybe 100 old photos so far this trip and some of them are of soldiers wearing their Buds. You'll like them. Are you collecting these images for publication? Good topic. I enjoy the old photos and I know lots of others do, too. Chuck

Here in Georgia it was not uncommon for an OPW-2 winner to receive a Chernenko OPW-1 if he had risen in prominence in the party or elsewhere. That's merely an alternate to the invalid award possibility, of course. I can't speak for elsewhere. Chuck

I posted a Tbilisi Victory Day thread in The Lounge. Probably should have put it here. I hope you'll check it out. I have quite a few of the patriotic postcards myself, probably enough for a small book. I like them a lot. As an aside, I also have a large group of WW I POW letters home to Russia from one officer, plus his release papers, parole and related documents. I brought them back with me to Tbilisi to be included in a book that is being written here. That should be interesting. Some members also enjoy Soviet stamps, as do I. I have a collection of GPW covers and cover art that once resided, I believe, in the old Tbilisi Museum of the Revolution. It's amazing what turns up if you look long enough. At any rate, I enjoyed attending the Victory Day celebration here, watching it in Red Square on TV and reading about it on the forum. CZ, your picture of Milica is perfect. I congratulate you. Chuck

It took me quite a while to warm up to how much you can enjoy and learn from period photos. I began to take them seriously a couple of years ago and I have accumulated quite a number of them. So far this trip I'm sure I have bought more than 100. Most are simply stand-alone photos, some have accompanying documents and a few have accompanying medals and the like. My favorite this trip is a signed 1907 photo of a young Tsarist officer and a couple of accompanying early Soviet documents and one tiny Red Crosss pin. His name is Karl Stromm. Since my name is Charles Stromme, you can see where that was something of a surprise. If you stretch your imagination just a little, I think you can see a family resemblance. At least, my friends here think so. The named documents are a Red Cross membership book and a MOPR book. There is still another badge to find but the owner has lost it for now. I hope it turns up. Chuck

Hello Christian You're quite welcome. I had forgotten all about it, then found it when I was looking for something else. That probably doesn't happen to anyone else. I also came across some nice Georgian gramotas and some other papers and photos. I've been enjoying the gramota thread. I'll be in Tiblisi for Victory Day, total of two weeks. I'll try to get some pictures worth sharing. I'll be bringing back some things I have already bought and probably buying a few others. Should be fun. Chuck

Section 6 and the page of signatories:

Sections 4 and 5: