Soviet Help with rank and translation please

[Brian Wolfe]

Hello Everyone,

I have been trying to add photos of medals in wear that I have in my collection. With that in mind I purchased 3 photos of Soviet Officers but I am not versed in this area and would like help with the rank, date of photo as well as the translation of the writing on the back of the photo. I think these are official photos of some sort due to the stamp. Any help would be greatly appresiated.

Regards

Brian

The first photo (I'll post each one as I have time) I think is of a Lieutenant Colonel going by his shoulder boards and the collar boards which I believe indicate a senior command personnel. This is a new area for me so I am probably way off on the rank. I see he is wearing a badge "To the Guards" as well as the Order of the Red Star. I have not identified the medals yet. Would the badge indicate he is an officer in the Border Guards?

[Brian Wolfe]

Here is a closer view of the shoulder and collar boards.

[Riley1965]

Would you show the back of the picture?

Doc

[Brian Wolfe]

This is what is written on the back of the photo.

Any help with the translation and the meaning of the stamp would be very welcomed.

Many thanks

Brian

[Guest Rick Research]

The narrow boards and straight double collar bars indicate: army technical officer (medical/QM/admin) and field grade. That is the M1945 dress tunic introduced after the war for general wear and replaced in 1955.

There should be a date on the reverse indicating when it was attested. He was (Guards--not specified) Lt. Col. Aleksandr Mikhailovich .....kov (last name obscured by stamp of the "Housing Exploitation Administration of Odessa Military District."

The first medal on his second row is the 1948 Armed Forces Jubilee, so this dates after that. Since he ONLY has a Red Star and military Merit Medal as "decorations" those with his rank indicate that both were long service awards-- for 15 years and 10 years respectively. Despite that he's got TWO "defense of" Medals ahead of his Victory Over Germany and two "Capture" or "Liberation" medals after the 1948-- so he got around!

[Brian Wolfe]

The narrow boards and straight double collar bars indicate: army technical officer (medical/QM/admin) and field grade. That is the M1945 dress tunic introduced after the war for general wear and replaced in 1955.

There should be a date on the reverse indicating when it was attested. He was (Guards--not specified) Lt. Col. Aleksandr Mikhailovich .....kov (last name obscured by stamp of the "Housing Exploitation Administration of Odessa Military District."

The first medal on his second row is the 1948 Armed Forces Jubilee, so this dates after that. Since he ONLY has a Red Star and military Merit Medal as "decorations" those with his rank indicate that both were long service awards-- for 15 years and 10 years respectively. Despite that he's got TWO "defense of" Medals ahead of his Victory Over Germany and two "Capture" or "Liberation" medals after the 1948-- so he got around!

Thank you Rick, you are amazing.

Regards

Brian

[Brian Wolfe]

This is the second photo that I need help with, the third one has nothing written on the back just a stamp but this one seems to have quite a bit.

There are two dates on the back, 10.5.1951 and 24 (month?) 1956. The medals are hard to make out but it would look like two Combat Service Medals (is that possible), I don't know the middle one, and the last two look like the victory over Germany and victory over Japan. He does have the Order of the Red Star as well.

Thanks again in advance for your help.

Regards

Brian

[Brian Wolfe]

This is a closer view of the shoulder boards. I can't make out the device next to the shoulder board's button, it's round and looks like a star on this round disk.

I'll post the views of the back next.

Brian

Edited February 1, 2009 by Brian Wolfe

[Guest Rick Research]

He is a very old Captain, but can't tell branch since the image is so small. Multiple Military Merit Medals were entirely possible since there were "real" ones "for" something as well as 10 years service ones-- he's got one of each with his ? 15 years Red Star. That could be a "real" Red Star too-- he might have had a late calling to the army.

Middle medal is Defense of the Caucasus. Can't always tell from distant black and white photos of the identically striped medals, but that ribbon is distinctive.

[Brian Wolfe]

This is the back of the photo.

I'll post two closer views of the writting next.

Brian

[Brian Wolfe]

This is a photo of the upper 1/2 of the writting on the back.

[Brian Wolfe]

This is the lower 1/2.

Sorry it takes so long for me to post these photo, it's not the tools, it's the user who is slow.

[Brian Wolfe]

This is the last photo of the three.

This is an area, as I have mentioned earlier, that I am not versed in so I really appresiate the assistance.

Edited February 1, 2009 by Brian Wolfe

[Brian Wolfe]

This is a closer view. Along with his medals he is wearing the Order of the Great Patriotic War star. The medals include two combat service medals and a victory over Germany medals. The rest I have as yet not identified.

I hope the view of the shoulder boards is clear enough to identify his rank.

Regards

Brian

[Brian Wolfe]

This is the last photo and is of the back of the photo showing the stamp and a signature.

No hope of knowing who this soldier was.

Any information on the stamp itself?

Thanks again for all of your help.

Regards

Brian

[koopyetz]

post no.11

Captain Grigori Gavrilovich Shcherbak

I believe he was was in the quartermaster service

[Brian Wolfe]

post no.11

Captain Grigori Gavrilovich Shcherbak

I believe he was was in the quartermaster service

Hi koopyetz,

Thank you very much, that is most helpful.

Regards

Brian

[Ed_Haynes]

Hey, Brian,

Are you catching 'another disease'? I know the feeling!

Edited February 1, 2009 by Ed_Haynes

[Guest Rick Research]

:Cat-Scratch: I've got to say for some "random" photos you've managed to acquire some of the most peculiarly INTERESTING units I've seen-- and I do hunt through these not only for faces and awards but for WEIRD unit stamps.

Second elderly Captain has been named above, and stated as Capatain of Administrative Services-- so his device is a hammer and sickle with a red enamel star between the head of the hammer and the inside tip of the sickle. He's got wider boards since his portrait was taken on 10 May 1951 after the thin ones were dropped-- and this was attested on 24 January 1956. You don't often find notation of such specific widely separated dates between taken and stamped.

And that stamp is one of THE weirdest I've ever seen--

8th Aviation Repairs/Maintenance RAILWAYS Workshop.

Yeah.

Flying trains! :speechless1:

[Guest Rick Research]

3rd photo is another "narrow" Lt. Col-- no device here probably means Administrative Service again as they often had NO device rather than the enamelled star/hammer/sickle (boards were silver not gold)

and if you think "administrative" sounds "boring" check out the Researched Groups subforums. Lastovka comes to mind-- the divisional CODES officer.

He's got an Order of the Patriotic War for something real, no Red Star (so under 15 years of service and still a Lt Col), 2 MMMs (1 real, 1 10 years service), a "Defense of"someplace, Victory Over Germany, Capture of Berlin, and a Capture of/Liberation of medal-- all over his 1948 Armed Forces Jubilee.

The stamp is unusual in red, which seemss to have been a state security coplor normally. It's from the 128th Mountain Rifles "Turkestanskaya, Order of the Red banner" Division...

which added further WW2 honorifics "Carpathian Mountains, Katowice, Feodosiya, Sevastapol" which obviously couldn't FIT!

In 1956, this was one of the three Soviet occupation divisions in Hungary which smashed their revolution.

So you've got very senior HQ staff officers from two EXTREMELY weird units and 1 from an extremely important Cold War division.

Not bad at all for starters! :cheers:

[Brian Wolfe]

Hey, Brian,

Are you catching 'another disease'? I know the feeling!

Hi Ed,

No, it was akin to the 24 hour flu. I'm better now.

My interest is still very much to the south of Russia.

Cheers

Brian

[Brian Wolfe]

I've got to say for some "random" photos you've managed to acquire some of the most peculiarly INTERESTING units I've seen-- and I do hunt through these not only for faces and awards but for WEIRD unit stamps.

Second elderly Captain has been named above, and stated as Capatain of Administrative Services-- so his device is a hammer and sickle with a red enamel star between the head of the hammer and the inside tip of the sickle. He's got wider boards since his portrait was taken on 10 May 1951 after the thin ones were dropped-- and this was attested on 24 January 1956. You don't often find notation of such specific widely separated dates between taken and stamped.

And that stamp is one of THE weirdest I've ever seen--

8th Aviation Repairs/Maintenance RAILWAYS Workshop.

Yeah.

Flying trains!

Many thanks Rick,

These photos are more "random" than you imagine. A local antiques mall is closing its doors for good due to a shopping mall being built on the site (after demolition that is). The dealer/collector who has this particular booth is getting rid of some items at very low prices so I purchased these three. I had no idea I would be getting such interesting photos.

Regards

Brian