Greg Collins

And, finally, a pair of military academy badges. The white one is from the Zrinyi Military Academy and the blue one is used when the recipient graduates from a civilian university. As you can see, the blue badge has suffered some enamel loss in the area of, and surrounding, the lower shield.

I have four more items in transit. When they arrive and I have posted them here, I'll consider that the end of this beginning.

A detail of the badge itself...

An MHSZ (which I believe to be the equivalent of the DOSAAF) Excellent Work badge in case. The badge is rather small and is somewhat dwarfed by the plastic case

A Kadar period ministerial Excellent Worker badge:

5 years service in the Voluntary Police (the Hungarian equivalent of Drushnik?)...

A badge for excellent work in the Workers' Militia...

A set of Excellent Worker of Light Industries badges...

Next, a Socialist Brigade set in silver (somewhat tarnished)...

A few more items to show... first, a rather "rode hard and put up wet" DISZ badge. Very small size- I believe a US dime would cover it. I'm looking for one of these in a larger size.

Nice badge, Kevin. I believe this is the first time I've seen the Security Troops insignia (in yellow, no less) incorporated into one of these music contest badges.

Thanks, Charles. As I had seen so much beautiful enamel work coming out of Hungary, I thought it odd that this piece would be "jobbed out" to Czechoslovakia. This is why I chose this badge over others being offered- those little "odd-ball" things that make collecting so much fun.

Finally (for now) my gold and bronze Orders of Labour, boxed with ribbons (thanks for helping me complete the gold, Charles). Both are flat backed.

I'll be adding more as I acquire.:D

Boxed with ribbons, silver and gold Medals for Service to the Country.

A boxed (no ribbon) 15 Year Defense Service Medal.

A boxed Workers' Militia Commemorative Medal and ribbon from 1964.

A late model Brotherhood medal and ribbon, silver grade.

On to the medals and orders... a '53 Medal of Labour and a '57 Medal of Service.

A group of Socialist Brigade sets; a boxed high brigade set, flanked by gold and bronze level sets.

A couple of military proficiency badges. The one with the white surround is for a "Perfect" soldier, while the one with the brass surround is for an "Advanced" soldier. Both have the changable number "1", and both are from the Kadar period.

A Czechoslovakian-made "Perfect Border Guard" badge. The type on the "nut" indicates it was make at the Zhukov mint.

Some KISZ badges (a general membership badge and three "level" badges), a "Ready for Labour and Defense" badge (nearly the same in most of the Warsaw Pact) with the Rakosi arms at the top, and an interesting Socialist Brigade badge with a plastic star mounted at the center.

As many of you probably already know, I've been collecting for awhile (Soviet, Mongolian, East German, Bulgarian, Romanian...). I've now begun my Hungarian collection. Unlike most of the other collections, I really have no "specialty" in mind here; I'm strictly collecting what appeals visually to me. What has impressed me most about Hungarian items is the lavish use of enamel- this seems to extend to most ODM's and badges. Before I go any further, I'd like to say that the most valuable piece in the collection to date is Charles Duncan's master work (#40 of 200).

Now to the few items I have... first, a couple of Kivalo Dolgozo badges (one of the Rakosi period and one of the late Kadar period) and a Stakhanovist badge from 1953.

According to Dr. Battushig's book, this was only awarded once- to Leonid Brezhnev! I would definitely have this authenticated if you are sure of it; I'm a bit skeptical. If you want the e-mail address of an expert on the subject, PM me.

This second badge is the newer (after 1959) model of the same badge. Here we have smaller hammers, no nomenclature on the badge front, the "staatswappen" (seal) on the flag and a pin back.

The "wavy lines" in the finish have always given me some concern; could this be an indication of radioactive contamination?

These next two badges would probably be more at home in the DDR section , however the "S" in the name SDAG Wismut is "Soviet", and the Wismut uranium mining operation was a partnership between the Soviets and East Germans. Anyway, both are 2nd Class as evidenced by the silver plated hammers. The first badge is pre-1959... there is no seal in the flag's center... and it is screw-backed. Both badges were produced by Prawema.