Soviet This man had few friends...

[Elmar Lang]

Hello,

here, my screwback Order "Sign of Honour" awarded to an NKVD official, complete with its booklet started in the days of Stalin's cleanups. Pity that the other order is missing.

The "Sign of Honour", Obverse and Reverse:

Edited January 23, 2008 by Elmar Lang

[Elmar Lang]

The booklet, with the recipient's picture:

[Elmar Lang]

...and the list of Orders and decorations:

[Guest Rick Research]

Oh if THIS one could talk !!!

Lieutenant Semenov must have been EXTREMELY zealous making arrests in July 1937...

I've seen a Patriotic War numbered 91,857 that was bestowed on 10 August 1944, so his must have been very close to that.

[Andwwils]

He seems to have survived the pre-war purges entirely since he got an award during the war itself. A lot of the Yezhov-era NKVD folks who were too "zealous" in their revolutionary vigilance against internal subversion became purge victims themselves after the Bukharin/Iagoda trial in 1938 or thereabouts. It would be interesting to know exactly what this person was in charge of wherever he was stationed...cleaning toilets and checking security clearance requests, issueing routine id cards to God only knows what. Neat little grouping.

Edited January 25, 2008 by Andwwils

[Lapa]

Elmar,

That is a very nice specimen you got there. If only it could tell its story

Marc