Greg Collins

A detail of the obverse of the medal:

The medal resting within the case:

A detail of the impressed coat-of-arms. Below the crest, a banner inscribed with the motto, "growing but not aging".

One of the nicer looking medals of the Peoples' Republic of Bulgaria, this medal was given, beginning April 2nd, 1979, to Bulgarian citizens,organizations and foreigners who contributed to, or fostered good relations with, the city of Sofia. The medal pictured is the first variation; in 1982 the type on the reverse of the medal was changed, removing reference to the anniversary, allowing the medal to continue to be given for acts benefiting the city. The medal was presented in a gold-coloured leatherette case, the top of which is shown here:

And a back detail- photographed in shadow to enhance the type.

A detail of the front... the first variant read "Republica Populara Romina".

Now, one of the most difficult to obtain Romanian medals, the "Defense of the Country" Medal (Medalia "De strajã Patriei")- an Internal Ministry award given, primarily, for guarding the borders. First given in 1958, this particular example is the post-1965 variant (RSR). It is damaged- the mounting ring broke from the star. I do have a jeweler friend who, I'm sure, can repair it.

A detail of the front... dunno why, but I get an urge for strawberries when I look at this star.

Not much happening with the back except for rivets...

A couple more recent acquisitions... if you go back to post #44, you'll find a 1959 document for the Order for Distinguished Services in Defense of the Social Order and the Country - 3rd Class (Ordinul "Pentru servicii deosebite aduse în apãrarea orânduirii sociale ºi de stat"); well, here's the Order itself, finally. This was given from 1958 through 1965. Finally married the order to the document!!! Hoorah!

A detail of the front... I don't know for sure who the woman is- I imagine it's Katherine. If you know who it is, by all means chime in. As far as the painting goes, and especially on the arms of the cross, I believe I could have done better with a mop. In all the examples I have seen of this medal (about 5 so far), the paint-job is the same.

And the reverse...

Not a current medal of Pridnestrovie, the medal "For Loyalty to the Black Sea Cossacks" was given by President Igor Smirnov to the Black Sea Cossacks (Ukraine) who fought for Pridnestrovie's independence in 1991-1992. They were commanded by Colonel Kucher, who was killed in action in Bender in June, 1992. Not the highest quality medal, it is of stamped brass (100% reverse) and the paint (possibly enamel) is certainly "outside the lines". A good addition to the collection, though.

My final post for now... a Pridnestrovie flag. Yes, yes, I know it's actually a Moldavia SSR flag, but it is still unofficially used in Pridnestrovie both by the two Communist parties as well as private citizens who have them. The official flag is the same but without the hammer and sickle. Hung unceremoniously on my clothesline.

The reverse of the badge...I believe the maker's mark reads "LMD" which, at least at one time, meant Leningrad Monetny Dvor.

The badge for the Defense of Pridnestrovie. Made of a light alloy, this badge is similar to the badges issued by the USSR in the '70's. There is a maker's mark on the reverse.

And the reverse...

A detail of the obverse of the medal...

Next, the medal "To the Defender of Pridnestrovie".

A detail of the Order...

A few more Pridnestrovie items... first, the Order of Personal Courage. This particular example is lacking the red enamel in the star "arm" at 2 o'clock. And, yes, that's General Suvorov's image. The back is plain.

I began collecting Mongolian after what I could afford of the Soviet stuff dried up; stayed with the Mongolian for nearly a year before it, too, dried up. I was able to build a reasonable collection in that time. I'm very happy that I got the orders I did, when I did, because the price on those has really skyrocketed. I just have a Red Banner of Labour, Military Valour and a couple Polar Stars... serious $$$ these days- alot more friendly when I got them. Have moved on through DDR, Bulgarian and now, primarily, Romanian but I never completely stop collecting any of it. I do keep up with the prices and continue to look for the odd deal. A good thing to remember is that all of our stuff is worth more now than in the "good old days".

Bob, If it's December be sure to take very, very warm clothing... Korea is "gawd-awful" cold in the winter! With regard to "stuff", seems that when I get priced-out of one area of the collection and I switch to another, damned if I don't get priced out of that area in a couple of months as well. At least I've been able to latch on to a few great pieces before that happens.

Thanks again, Gordon. I guess that, since I didn't have the funds to chase the high dollar items when I began my collection, I went for the more obscure items that weren't as popular. As these items weren't popular, there wasn't a whole lot of material available on them so............ found a copy of the 1998-99 from the man himself, Frank Bartel, which began e-mailing back and forth; bought Ralph Pickard's book and, through the net, we've become friends; found a copy of the Feder book on the MfS; the rest is research, research and more research. At least the information is there, you just have to dig it up. Also, I do "trawl" the German location of our favorite auction site... there are still deals there. The first three groups of items I showed- bronze, silver and gold honour pins with documents to the same person- all ran me less than $30 including postage. I knew what I was looking for. Am currently working on the Romanian Securitate, and if anyone thinks the research on the Stasi is difficult, whew!!! Try the Securitate!

Thanks, Gordon. I'm lucky enough to have a trusty copy of Bartel's 1998-99. Ralph Pickard has indicated that there will be a Dynamo section in his next book. With the emphasis placed on the organization (doping, high profile sports/gymnastics/skating informers, etc.), it is impossible (to me, anyway) that someone would collect the Stasi without collecting Dynamo.