Soviet Orange Piped 1959 VOKhR Officer's Visor Cap

[Guest Rick Research]

Once again I post this mysterious object, hoping for some sort of information to indicate what BRANCH of duty this color piping meant, since the usual item found is merely grass green piped like the band color.

The cap badge is nickled steel and a separate enamel star:

Maker's mark dated 1959:

It is in wool, not lowly ranking Comrades cotton.

[JapanX]

ВОХР МПС СССР для начсостава/VOChR MPS for commanding officers.

ВОХР- Войска ОХраны Республики

МПС - Министерство Путей Сообщения

Pretty rare ;)

Edited July 27, 2013 by JapanX

[Guest Rick Research]

I know what BOKhR meant, but what does orange piping indicate for branch of service? Green? Black? How many other colors... and all = ???

I have never seen anything to explain their insignia: collar rank, no shoulder boards... ever?

[JapanX]

I know what BOKhR meant

Guess this is instead "thanks"

Well, good for you...

As far as I understand orange piping indicate branch of service - MPS (ministry of transport communications)

They have like zillion different variations of caps (one for every decade).

http://www.undertheredstar.com/vokhr.htm

http://www.vedomstva-uniforma.ru/mundir7/vohr_nkps/index.html

Edited July 27, 2013 by JapanX

[Guest Rick Research]

Color = branch is what I was asking for.

"Spasiba."

So while pumpkin-piped was outside guarding railway telegraph lines,

his buddy was inside checking papers or guarding the railway stations....

Edited July 27, 2013 by Rick Research

[JapanX]

Hmmm...

I guess better way of translating MPS will be

"Ministry of railways" (word by word translation - ministry of communication lines)

So these dudes are from the same department.

[Guest Rick Research]

So... back in 1958/59 orange pumpkins patrolled along all (?) the railway lines, guarded warehouses--places like that--and nice blueberry blue comrades (of course) bossed everybody around? Podpolkovnik Grinenko was "KGB for Lvov Region railways," so State Security also had specially assigned units (all same uniform though) for inland canals, highways, and so on?

There was/is nothing like this in the U.S.

Well, not in 1958/59 anyway.

So, everybody BUT the S.S. blueberries working under M.P.S. (old N.K.P.S.), so orange pumpkins would also gotten...

just like REAL railwaymen (who didn't have guns?)

But then the ARMY had railway people too!

So many UNIFORMS! So many people... they didn't need TRAINS, they just had to hand parcels from one Comrade to the next one down the line!

Edited July 28, 2013 by Rick Research

[JapanX]

The funniest thing is that modern dictionaries give us "Ministry of communication" and only one dictionary (specialized in transport terms) gives the correct (by context) translation "Ministry of railways".

Yes, "orange" guys were busy with the railways and railways only.

KGB also had special department for railways.

For more info about MPS

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Railways_(Soviet_Union)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_transport_in_the_Soviet_Union

Edited July 28, 2013 by JapanX

[Guest Rick Research]

This makes me happy: combines TWO of my interests--railways and police.

But in many thousands of Soviet photos never have I seen any VOKhR. Maybe they were all... shy.

[JapanX]

By the way, this orange piping will disappear from their caps somewhere around 1962 (maybeveven earlier)

Instead of orange they became green.

As for the photos - I'll try to find something for you ;)

[Guest Rick Research]

I think I posted a 1980s green" NCO shirt/tunic here many years back. I'll bring that back up or post it if I didn't. 1930s style insignia but in that horrible metallic flashed plastic looking insignia common to all our "empires" as they fell apart.

[JapanX]

Find official regulation for this "orange" visor cape.

It was introduced on June 25, 1949 by MPS order # 2710

Full text of order

MPS order #2710.doc

[JapanX]

Extract