Soviet What is this?

[usairforce]

[Ulsterman]

Wow!!!!

That is sweet!

That my friend is a very early Hungarian workers' badge in a newer box. See Hunyadi's posts on Hungarian items (#52 and #58 below). By the way-if it's for sale-let me know.

Edited January 2, 2007 by Ulsterman

[hunyadi]

According to the Hungarian "Blue Book" - the Kivalo Ujito - was instituted on Oct 30th, 1974 by the Ministers Council it was to be awarded uppon recomendation of the 'Council of Technical Innovation' (my rough translation) It was awarded for innovation, invention, etc... in the technical fields. The badge came in Gold, Silver and Bornze classes and came with a monetary award that was determined by the "Council of Technical Innovation" its interesting to see that the many 'variants' to the "Kivalo" awards in the 1970's reverted back to traditional images of the 1948-52 badges. Still have yet to find one here...

[Ulsterman]

wow! That explains the newer box. Very cool.

[Christian Zulus]

Nice and well designed medal .

Is that a 2nd class?

Best regards

Christian

BTW: What about rarity & today's market value?

[hunyadi]

yes - that is the second class (silver). Funny thing about the 1970's era ones can still be found for $10-20 easily - but compared to the 1948-53 era - double and triple the prices. Mainly it boils down to the fact that after 1956 the 'new' Hungarian Coat of Arms, required that the older badges to be turned in and replaced with new ones with the post 1956 Coat of Arms. Many of the 'old stock' was destroyed or simply the old coat of arms was taken off and a new one put in place. Hence the pre 1956 stuff is more rare as the government tried all efforts to take them away.

As for rarity - from 1948 to 1989 there were over 300 variations of the 'Kivalo' workers badges - I have seen and handled probably 30+ variants, others I have only seen in a privatly published book, and then ones like this one - I have only seen folks getting off of Ebay and the like. It is rare - probably - considering that an individual had to come up with some invention and patent it to be awarded one. (an Award document would even be mroe rare!) But then in the "Blue Book" there is mention of 'Excelent Doctor, Teacher, Sportsman, Heavy Industry, Construction, etc...' So to determine numbers based on a society that has remained about 10 million citizens elligible? Unfortunatly when the Blue Book was published in 1977 they did not make mention of how many were awarded.

[Ulsterman]

So, the general "excellent workers' badge" was for factory work only ? I thought the professional awards were abolished after 1950 or so.

[hunyadi]

So, the general "excellent workers' badge" was for factory work only ? I thought the professional awards were abolished after 1950 or so.

Yes and No, the "excellent workers' badge" was still awarded for factory, profesional, semi-profesional, etc... There were "other" "excelent workers badges" for some trades (if they fell under the juristiction of certain 'councils' that were for some reason given permission to issue their own unique badges) IE - if you were the engineer for say the spoon facotry after 1957 and you did a good job, you would get the standard Kivalo Dolgozol award. But say you were the engineer working for the food distribution in the 1960's - and that one council for food distribution had been granted by the Council of Ministers to create and bestow their own awards - then that is what you were awarded. Clear as mud eh? But these certain 'industries' were few and far between it seems and by and large the most common 'Excelent Workers Badges' were the hanging star type.

By the 1970's I think there may have been some contention as certian industires just got their own "special" looking badges while others doing similar (and perhaps even more valiant work) got the "standard" hanging star type. Then in the 1970's they went crazy with a whole slew of new and various badges. It seems at this point that the Council of Ministers created and then delegated the medals to various smaller 'Councils' to make and bestow their own designs and requirements. So by the mid 1970's you see these type of badge appearing for all sorts of things (but I still have seen only most in reference material) This was (I think) a product of a rapidly expanding goevernment and the result of a period refered to here as the "Frigidair Socailsim" where the Hungarian gov began to release the grip of control and began to trade with the west as well. (the standard of living went up dramaticaly so much so that the govenrment introduced a personal income tax!)

[Ulsterman]

Ah-the big question then, could one have received the professional badge and the excellent worker's badge- and maybe even the projects medal as well as other labour awards?

Fascinating stuff, I am hooked-as you know.

[hunyadi]

Ah-the big question then, could one have received the professional badge and the excellent worker's badge- and maybe even the projects medal as well as other labour awards?

Fascinating stuff, I am hooked-as you know.

As far as I know - certainly - if you worked for company X and got the 'standard' badge then got a job with a more specific industry then you got the badge for that pecific section etc...these could all be worn at any time. More often members of the Munkasor "Workers Militia" wore these with pride - but for an individual to get several variaitons from different trades - it was possible but probably not that common as most people lived and worked for the same company for life. Thsoe that moved around from job to job were not that common.

It also has to be remembered that the average 'grunt' worker would almost alwyas get the 'standard' hanging star badge. To get ones like this one posted and the other more 'specific' type - you were more than likely a college or universtiy grad.