Christian Zulus

Dear William, I don't believe that . It's chemically impossible to create a decent patina on gold and our experts will easily dedect faked wear traces. Maybe the RF-government is going to lock away the old dies . Best regards Christian

Dear Christophe, speaking about official CCCP-awards, as listed at PMD-Bible or Andrew's Mondvor-website, it's one order and one medal: - Order of Personal Courage, 28.12.1988 - Strengthening of Fellowship of Arms Medal, 25.05.1979 Best regards Christian

Dear Ed, what about patina, traces of wear etc. etc. ? O.K., the mint has the dies, but I guess, that it is hardly possible possible to fake a (genuine) patina or to transform an order fresh from the mint to a really used item, which had been worne by the veteran for decades . How knows, maybe the mint produces a series of 5000 genuine Suvorov 1cl . That might result a net profit of about USD 500 million for the mint (if 5000 collectors have the cash to buy a Suvorov 1cl .... ) Best regards Christian

Dear Paul, I guess, that's a rather moderate & fair price for a RB#2 with such a low s/n. Best regards Christian

Dear Matteti, many thanks for your informations . It seems, that my HSL might have been awarded in the very early Brezhnev-Kosygin-Mikoyan-Era . Best regards Christian

Dear Christophe, many thanks for these maps . As I guessed, it's Dubrovna , which (+ the 45th Guards rifle division) is mentioned at least in Paul Carell's "Verbrannte Erde". Best regards Christian

Dear Vic, many thanks . In my opinion, the HSL is a very unique and outstanding award: On one side the HSL is the most supreme (civil) award of the CCCP - to be compared with a British KBE. The title HSL was something like a "Socialist Knighthood". On the other side it is a 100 % democratic award, because it was awarded to collective farmers and factory workers as well, as to renowed scientists, artists or top Politburo members. It's difficult to find informations (in English) about that unique medal in the internet : http://mondvor.narod.ru/HLab.html http://www.bmstu.ru/~fvo/data/ussr/ordens/high/herosoc.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_of_Socialist_Labor Best regards Christian BTW: Gorbachev http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_Gorbachev never received a HSL - and that was somehow correct ...

Dear Christophe, congratulations - I guess, you have got it . I couldn't find anything about that location, which should be close to the town of Dubrovna in the Leningrad Oblast http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leningrad_Oblast ... That's the Wiki-entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevsky_Pyatachok That's the mentioned memorial there: Best regards Christian

Dear Sergey, many thanks for the informations about the movie "Svoi" ("Our Own") . Sounds very interesting and their should be also a German language version, but I could hardly find any informations in internet . Do you have some links ? That's true: The (aristocratic ) Mikhalkov-family was highly respected by Stalin, Brezhnev, Yeltsin and Putin. Two hours ago I watched in Austrian TV Nikita Mikhalkov and Vladimir Putin at a dinner in Mikhalkov's home drinking vodka & kissing . What's wrong with the relationship of artists to state authorities - as long as the artistic quality remains on supreme level ? Dmitri Shostakovich http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dmitri_Dmitri...ch_Shostakovich was also a HSL and won even more Stalin-Prizes, than Nikita's father. But did he compose bad music . Best regards Christian

Dear Sergey, why not the newer ones of Mikhalkov ? That's the official website of Nikita Mikhalkov (Russian language only ): http://www.trite.ru/mikhalkov.mhtml?PubID=12 . That's one of my favorite photographs, showing Nikita with his daughter Nadezhda Mikhalkova (who played a leading role in that movie!) after winning the OSCAR for "Burnt by the Sun" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burnt_by_the_Sun : That outstanding movie about a summer day in the life of the Civil-War-General Kotov (3x RB) in the year 1936 in the Soviet Union won also the Grand Prix du Jury at Cannes Film Festival 1994 and numerous other international film awards. Well, it's quite rare, that a movie wins the OSCAR and Cannes . Best regards Christian

Faked Motherland 1cl in PMD's "Red Bible" ? Dear Marc, if you look on page 172 in PMD's "Red Bible", you will see a Motherland 1cl s/n. 14. The elements of this item are ident to my Motherland 2cl: - rather massive wreath under the central star - drop shaped top ray. On the other hand my Motherland 3cl s/n. 24327 has the ident (slim) wreath of my Motherland 2cl s/n. 2213 and also it's parallel edges of the top ray. Maybe the mint used elements from different dies as they liked it for manufacturing the Motherlands ? I can hardly believe, that Paul McDaniel presented a faked - on the basis of a Motherland 3cl - Motherland 1cl to us ? I think, that most of the (awarded) Motherland 2cl are still at their owners, who had been awarded with that order in the 1980s and some few are in museums (about the 2500 went to collectors ...). Maybe it is possible to make a small survey among the legitimate holders of Motherland 2cl to check their orders and to shoot some good photographs. Maybe the same might be possible at the large museums. The 3 classes of the Motherland are worth to do some phaleristic research - specially for getting clear guidlines in the authentication of Motherland 2cl (the 1st class seems far too rare for having any significance at the market, I guess). The Motherland had been - besides the RB and RS - the most common military order in the late years of the Soviet Union and the war in Afghanistian is also included. Best regards Christian

Gentlemen, I guess, that Igor did a mistake in typing the price tag into the website ? Well, it's just an ordinary and rather late St. George Cross of the 4th class + that medal, of which 697 items had been issued ... Maybe USD 25000,- .... Best regards Christian

1st class Gentlemen, Ranko from Belgrade offers now a 1st class for EUR 800,-: Best regards Christian

Dear Paul, have a look at Dave's website http://www.forvalor.com/ . One year ago Dave published his outstanding book and the price is only $39.99 plus shipping . A real must . Best regards Christian

Dear Auke, dear Sergey, many thanks for the information - "Come and See" . ICESTORM - as usually - distributes a copy with German subtitles: http://www.icestorm.de/?option=com_shop&am...=47&id=1266 Well, I am not so sure, that I will get that great fan of Elem Klimov http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elem_Klimov . I really love the movies of the Mikhalkov brothers, specially from the outstanding Nikita: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikita_Mikhalkov http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrei_Konchalovsky Nikita Mikalkov's Утомлённые солнцем (Burnt by the Sun) is my absolute favorite movie. Their father, Sergey Mikhalkov http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergei_Mikhalkov , HSL + 3x Stalin-Prize-Winner, 95 years old, is of course also an outstanding artistic personality . I will order "Come and See" as a DVD . Best regards Christian

Dear Marc, which Бурцев is this ? It's not the HSU http://www.warheroes.ru/hero/hero.asp?Hero_id=4990 , because he got only 2 RBs. So, a genuine RB#7 is at the museum . What about the RB#8 ? At least Eugene Rabkin is wrong with his statement, that RBs beyond RB#6 don't exist .... Best regards Christian

HSL av. & rv. on different background

HSL rv.

Hero of Socialist Labour, Type 2 / Variant 3 Gentlemen, I have that HSL type 2 / variation 3 with s/n. 10852 in my collection. Variation 3 of the type 2 started with s/n. 10000. Andrew has s/n. 10142 on his website: http://mondvor.narod.ru/HLab.html The small nut on the screw at the hanger is missing . Is it possible to tell the year or period, when HSL 10852 had been awarded - around the year 1960 ? When did the chance from variation 2 to variation 3 (s/n. 10000) took place ? Many thanks for your expertise . Best regards Christian

Dear Marc, to keep Christophe's quiz running: Maybe one or two more hints - time period (?) . Best regards Christian

Dear Sergey, dear Marc, is there a chance to see that movie with English or German subtitles ? What's the name of that film ? I always thought, that Освобождение (439 minutes ) is the best film about the GPW: http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?s=&showtop...st&p=233039 Best regards Christian

Dear Marc, many thanks for the link . As Ed already noted, it's not much help for non Russian native-speakers . Marc, please could you tell us the phaleristic content of Igor's postings at sammler.ru - many thanks . Best regards Christian

Dear Marc, yes, there is a difference in the form of the wreath under the central star - 2213 is more "slim". But the s/n. of 1604 is engraved by a rotating tool instrument . (Maybe my scans are too bad ... ). There are also no signs or traces at the rv. of 1604 of the usual manipulations. 1604's top ray is drop-shaped, but my two Motherlands 3cl - s/n. 24327 & 128584 - have (like Motherland 2cl 2213) parallel edges. Maybe the mint used elements from different dies to manufacture the Motherland 2cl ? First the mint struck the elements of a Motherland and later on the handcrafters got the elements from the stock for finishing a 2cl or 1cl ? Did Igor Pak list anywhere in the internet his crucial points of identifying authentic Motherland 2cl ? Did Igor present some scans somewhere in the www ? Best regards Christian

Dear Marc, many thanks for your expertise . I had never any doubts about Motherland 2cl s/n. 2213 - it's a real beauty and I paid in spring 1994 the hughe sum of EUR 630,- for that item. I was fascinated by the design and the quality and so I paid that (idiotic ) amount of money for that order. As already mentioned, the very early 1990s had been a period without faked Motherlands 2cl, due to the fact, that there had been hundreds of them in the stocks of the higher military commands (+ unissued order booklets) waiting for being sold to the West . I had some times doubts about the authenticy of Motherland 2cl s/n. 1604, which I bought years later for the more moderate price of EUR 180,-. But I compared my 1604 to other - authentic - Motherlands 2cl, like the very early ones of Maksim on Andrew/Igor's website s/n. 871 or Andreas' s/n. 718, and found no severe differences at the av., but the rv. (no fine line under s/n., but something like a small "beam") is different. What convinced me partly, was the quality of the gold plating, which was ident in colour and that pale & dull impression. What are the details on microscopic level, we have to look at ? Why used the mint different dies for the 3 different classes of Motherland - it was only the gold plating, which made the difference ? Best regards Christian

Dear Dave, welcome back on board of GMIC . By publishing your outstanding book "No Deed Forgotten", you made the most significant and most scientific contribution to the memory of the heroic deeds of Red Army soldiers in the West . We all missed your expertise here at GMIC very much . Best regards Christian