Bob

Thanks Lukasz! Now, do you also know what the little blue ribboned medal on the right hand side of his jacket is? It corresponds with one of the ribbons or is something seperate? For sure he seems attached to it because he persistently wears it. Note, this is not a quiz - I really have no clue myself!

Triggered by thread on Order of Queen / Saint Tamara (if which some people have purchased more elaborate versions with jewels etc. on them... well beyond the original design) and also occasional jewelled medal I've seen in dealer catalogues (generally middle east), I am curious whether this practice has ever been seen on Soviet awards? Obviously the Order of Victory is lavishly designed to begin with... but has it ever been noted that people had won an "ordinary" order of lenin, order of glory, etc. and then had a jeweller add some extra touches to it in the form of diamonds, etc.? Just curious.

Interesting little article in this weeks edition of The Economist triggered by recent awarding of Medal of Honour to a US Marine serving in Iraq (jumping onto a handgrenade to protect his fellow marines while in hand to hand combat with insurgents). Quote: "Medals that specifically reward heroics are much harder to come by. More than 21.000 veterans won coveted Silver Stars in Vietnam. Only a few hundred servicemen have received the same in Iraq and Afghanistan" Subsequently arguing that if services gave more medals, the bravery of troops might be more widely publicised... vs. only Pat Tillman and Jessica Lynch recently being household names... more for serving with honour rather than real heroics.

Let me highlight some interesting ones: Virgin Lands 1,187 24/10/1979 OWNED BY ME Virgin Lands 1,300 24/10/1979 NUMBER QUOTED BY ED Now... what happened around October '79? Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 6,854 29/08/1995 OWNED BY ME Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 6,885 28/08/1995 OWNED BY VATJAN Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 6,972 29/08/1995 OWNED BY ED Perhaps an interesting case to have a look at - get our awards out and compare numbering etc. as they presumably came from the same batch.

Updated list - not keeping track of types, etc. (lazy me) but still a good quick reference tool for dating an award. No guarantees of course. AWARD NUMBER DATE Distinguished Co-Worker of the State Security Service 163 17/07/1944 Distinguished Co-Worker of the State Security Service 393 10/09/1973 Hero of Labour Gold Soyombo 1 1956 Hero of Labour Gold Soyombo 52 28/11/1962 Hero of Labour Gold Soyombo 250 1981 Honorious Medal of Labour 9,393 13/11/1956 Honorious Medal of Labour 10,328 30/08/1956 Honorious Medal of Labour 10,660 17/10/1951 Honorious Medal of Labour 11,032 06/11/1956 Honorious Medal of Labour 16,235 26/06/1964 Honorious Medal of Labour 16,573 15/07/1965 Honorious Medal of Labour 17,040 07/07/1966 Honorious Medal of Labour 23,159 04/08/1976 Honorious Medal of Labour 24,082 14/07/1960 Medal We Won 9,678 09/07/1946 Medal We Won 26,931 28/12/1990 Medal 25 Years of the MPR 13,958 30/07/1946 Medal 25 Years of the MPR 14,184 17/08/1946 Medal 40 Years of the MPR 15,955 15/09/1961 Medal for Meritorious Service in Battle 854 26/09/1946 Medal for Meritorious Service in Battle 1,288 16/09/1947 Medal for Meritorious Service in Battle 3,813 08/07/1947 Medal for Meritorious Service in Battle 4,312 08/07/1947 Medal for Meritorious Service in Battle 4,521 11/09/1953 Medal for Meritorious Service in Battle 5,228 24/07/1954 Medal for Meritorious Service in Battle 19,346 24/09/1984 Medal for the Victory over Japan 3,443 06/07/1946 Medal for Unselfishness 1,046 29/04/1999 Medal of Friendship 1,761 12/11/1968 Medal of Friendship 4,086 1971 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 1,049 01/10/1959 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 1,552 29/09/1964 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 2,146 00/06/1969 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 2,695 1972 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 2,777 1971 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 4,836 15/07/1985 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 5,138 03/04/1986 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 5,685 27/03/1987 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 6,300 09/07/1988 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 6,515 04/07/1991 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 6,854 29/08/1995 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 6,885 28/08/1995 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 6,972 29/08/1995 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 7,388 15/09/1995 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 8,068 09/08/1999 Order for Meritorious Service in Battle 8,126 09/08/1999 Order of Combat Red Banner 5,348 09/08/1999 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 5,396 16/02/1965 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 8,128 01/03/1967 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 11,608 13/02/1970 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 16,062 21/02/1972 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 21,460 25/01/1975 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 24,179 20/02/1976 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 31,252 22/02/1978 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 33,062 17/02/1979 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 34,361 23/02/1980 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 43,883 00/03/1984 Order of Mother Heroine - 1st class 45,130 25/02/1981 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 543 29/05/1958 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 9,195 25/06/1958 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 13,892 10/10/1958 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 15,709 10/11/1958 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 23,451 25/02/1960 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 25,633 02/03/1961 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 29,451 25/02/1962 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 36,905 11/02/1964 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 39,895 04/03/1964 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 61,823 08/02/1969 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 77,748 17/02/1972 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 77,962 17/02/1972 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 84,187 22/02/1973 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 116,403 00/00/1978 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 120,901 27/02/1980 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 130,167 29641 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 145,118 18/08/1985 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 145,718 1985 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 187,862 22/05/1995 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 191,632 00/5/1997 Order of Mother Heroine - 2nd class 191,640 22/05/1997 Order of Polar Star 88 06/07/1946 Order of Polar Star 822 23/09/1946 Order of Polar Star 1,162 17/10/1951 Order of Polar Star 1,217 04/12/1955 Order of Polar Star 1,225 6/09/1944 Order of Polar Star 1,562 08/07/1947 Order of Polar Star 1,956 29/11/1955 Order of Polar Star 2,265 3/11/1945 Order of Polar Star 2,506 30/12/1956 Order of Polar Star 2,705 08/12/1948 Order of Polar Star 2,946 08/07/1950 Order of Polar Star 3,079 16/01/1957 Order of Polar Star 3,301 1956 Order of Polar Star 3,553 08/07/1947 Order of Polar Star 3,917 30/12/1956 Order of Polar Star 4,832 06/11/1956 Order of Polar Star 4,948 08/12/1948 Order of Polar Star 5,901 20/07/1946 Order of Polar Star 6,133 16/02/1956 Order of Polar Star 6,335 24/05/1950 Order of Polar Star 6,453 10/11/1956 Order of Polar Star 8,143 15/11/1958 Order of Polar Star 9,013 14/12/1957 Order of Polar Star 9,138 14/07/1960 Order of Polar Star 10,358 25/08/1961 Order of Polar Star 11,340 18/05/1965 Order of Polar Star 11,611 00/03/1966 Order of Polar Star 13,376 01/12/1969 Order of Polar Star 14,236 03/07/1971 Order of Polar Star 14,292 03/06/1971 Order of Polar Star 14,718 12/03/1973 Order of Polar Star 15,860 03/07/1971 Order of Polar Star 18,389 19/10/1976 Order of Polar Star 19,735 01/12/1979 Order of Polar Star 25,483 03/04/1980 Order of Polar Star 26,734 19/11/1990 Order of Polar Star 27,017 03/07/1991 Order of Polar Star 28,321 18/04/1995 Order of Polar Star 29,034 29/11/1998 Order of Polar Star 29,893 6-xx-2000 Order of Polar Star 31,529 21/11/2001 Order of Polar Star 185/1804 1936 Order of Suche Baatar 1 1941 Order of Suche Baatar 24 1946 Order of Suche Baatar 31 1949 Order of Suche Baatar 158 1957 Order of Suche Baatar 158 24/10/1957 Order of Suche Baatar 166 29/05/1957 Order of Suche Baatar 340 1961 Order of Suche Baatar 341 1961 Order of Suche Baatar 342 1961 Order of Suche Baatar 343 1961 Order of Suche Baatar 344 1961 Order of Suche Baatar 423 1962 Order of Suche Baatar 423 28/11/1962 Order of Suche Baatar 470 13/12/1963 Order of Suche Baatar 541 1966 Order of Suche Baatar 542 1966 Order of Suche Baatar 558 1966 Order of Suche Baatar 586 1968 Order of Suche Baatar 588 1968 Order of Suche Baatar 589 1968 Order of Suche Baatar 591 1968 Order of Suche Baatar 612 10/11/1968 Order of Suche Baatar 642 12/08/1969 Order of Suche Baatar 684 15/10/1969 Order of Suche Baatar 692 1969 Order of Suche Baatar 803 05/07/1971 Order of Suche Baatar 919 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 922 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 923 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 924 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 925 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 927 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 928 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 931 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 932 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 933 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 937 1971 Order of Suche Baatar 989 1973 Order of Suche Baatar 1,123 1975 Order of Suche Baatar 1,255 14/12/1975 Order of Suche Baatar 1,335 1978 Order of Suche Baatar 1,404 22/10/1980 Order of Suche Baatar 1,462 08/06/1981 Order of Suche Baatar 1,463 1981 Order of Suche Baatar 1,465 1981 Order of Suche Baatar 1,491 09/07/1981 Order of Suche Baatar 1,530 1981 Order of Suche Baatar 1,532 1981 Order of Suche Baatar 1,548 1981 Order of Suche Baatar 1,562 1981 Order of Suche Baatar 1,715 1986 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 621 17/11/1951 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 1,039 16/02/1956 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 1,423 24/12/1959 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 2,329 22/10/1960 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 2,845 01/02/1960 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 3,744 24/11/1973 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 3,809 28/04/1980 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 4,835 22/12/1978 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 5,050 09/07/1981 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 5,826 00/00/1987 Order of the Red Banner of Labour 6,238 15/04/1993 Title of Merit 607 26/06/1981 Virgin Lands 1,187 24/10/1979 Virgin Lands 1,300 24/10/1979 Virgin Lands 3,074 16/12/1982

As the possibility to get awards researched and learn about who / what / when / etc., the question starts to arise... similar to Soviet awards... if you had to "blindly" acquire an award with the intention of getting research done, what do you suppose would be the reward with highest chance of "an interesting story" (i.e. not long service awards) in relation to it's price of course?

Uhoh... there I was thinking, good, found a nice little country to collect medals from that nobody else is interested in and I can already see the signs similar to what happened with Mongolian awards a year or so ago

I am mixed between & on the one hand and on the other Perhaps what I need is

Interesting order.... Top to bottom, left to right: 1) Order of Skanderbeg 3rd class 2) Medal of Remembrance 3) Order of Bravery 4) Order of Labour 3rd class 5) Order of Freedom 1st class OR Medal for Distinguished Defense Service? 6) Medal of Bravery 7) Medal of Liberation? 8) Order Red Banner of Labour 1st class OR Medal for 10th Anniversary of the Army Above appears to indicate that 1-3rd class are awarded not as subsequent awards but on the degree of "merit" for lack of a better word of the act for which the award was issued... assuming I didn't mix up nr 5 / 8 of course

Here medal - horizontal pinback but nothing particularly "interesting" on reverse.

Side by side. Significantly different... also facial expression for instance. Surely not made from same cast?

Interesting Rick. I got my other one out (and also again the Klietmann article)... the other one has more of a yellow oxydized look which would indeed indicate towards a Kust version. What I don't get is what version my Meybauer then is... a "first class" with lost gilt, or a "second class" with added enamel or... ? Question mark comes from the fact that center piece is bronze and not gilt and certainly not silver. Grrr

Here's a pic then. The rivet (or something which looks like it) is difficult to see because the pin can't be taken out due to excessively bent closed "lid" for the ring. The award is slightly lighter than my other one and also dimensions are a bit different. I'll take your word for it being a Kust then Rick - and pic in Klietmann confirms this as well (which I didn't have handy at work). Such a shame that these cannot be linked to person which - as Ed mentions - would make it even more interesting. I will however be travelling in Georgia in December / January. For me phaleristics is also a great "excuse" to visit certain countries and read more about them.

Recently acquired another one (didn't want the first one to be lonely ). Will post pic later today. At first glance, it looked similar to the one I already had but: - bronze colored center medaillon - with blue enamel but different "texture" (not as evenly applied) - on reverse the condition is very clean but oddly enough there's a rivet! Hope to receive some feedback once pic is posted. This award is not as straightforward as one would expect. Then again, that only makes things more interesting (although people with Mongolian Polar Star orders might disagree:)).

For sale at a dealer near me... real gold partisan star. The price is a bit painful though: 1.650 EURO! Or, as some would translate it, 1 Sukhe baatar!

Here some very recent ones. Probably allowing us to identify sources of manufacturing or "batches" as there are similarities (e.g. compare the one with Uighur script vs. a previously posted one also with it and similar reverse). Unfortunately, these have a much more "mass production" feel to them. left to right - OUTSTANDING MINER - OUTSTANDING WORKER OF THE GEOLOGY - OUTSTANDING MINER (why a different one?)

Here's a "Distinguished Oil Worker and Distinguished Miner" Title... not easy to find despite it's "simple" design. I.e. a "3rd class" in this area - awarded for 4 years service. Much to my surprise, while travelling through Albania, I was able to see that Albania had quite an oil industry... although not the most environmentally friendly and certainly in need of some "de-rusting"!

Here's then - after a long hard search! - an Order of the Red Star 1st class in virtually perfectly new condition. Also note the interesting difference in attachment of the pin on the reverse of ribbon. What still intrigues me is whether these higher classes (also for other awards) were awarded much like the Glory of the Soviet awards (i.e. second time you do something good you get second class, third time first class, etc.) or whether it's an estimation of the "merit" of your deed and you can get a first class right away?

Here a nice one as well which recently found its way in my "shoebox full of Mongolian stuff". Came without a booklet so it's nice that it did come with a case to keep it nice and warm 4 rivets, serial number under screwpost serial number 2.369 I have to say, these Mongolian orders never let you down. The design, quality and sheer size / weight are extremely nice.

Cool! I am planning to visit Khalkhin Gol next year... can't wait to get there (and see rusting Japanese tanks?)

And this looks like a pretty important guy (wasn't collecting medals yet when I made this pic a little over 1 year ago)

Details

Revisiting last years vacation pics. Don't want to bore you with every little detail. So just a nice pic of Nachimov statue + some details from a small but interesting naval museum. Some (foreign?) awards not easily identifiable... at least not by me.

Have started reading a bit and looking at maps in light of my intended travels to and in Mongolia Q2 next year. For those that have already travelled there, what are the good sites for people interested in military history and in particular Mongolian / Soviet awards? Has anybody been in Choibalsan city incl. the Khalkhin Gol War Museum? How about actually travelling to Khalkhin Gol itself (where supposedly the monuments and relics are all over the place)? Are there any good markets for buying medals? Still in very preliminary phase of planning. Hope to arrange a visit to the state mint (seeing how orders / medals are being made!), among other places.

Another "ID help" requested here. My one reference source for Japanese ODM doesn't identify the attached. So what is it?