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Soviet WW2 Medal for theDefense of Stalingrad, Variation 1, with Award Certificate, Series S #09807issued on 8 January 1944.
These are GUARANTEED ORIGINAL medal and document officially issuedby the Soviet authorities to a participant of the WW2 Defense of Stalingrad,NOT reproductions!
The medallion of the medal is in brass and measures 37.1 mm inheight including eyelet, 32.0 mm wide; weighs 17.2 g not including thesuspension and connecting link. The front has a Russian inscription “For theDefense of Stalingrad”. The artwork features a line of Red Army soldiers on theforefront with an unfurled Soviet banner and airplanes and tanks in thebackground. On the reverse is the motto “For Our Soviet Motherland!” The medalis a Variation 1 characterized by a separate eyelet soldered to the main bodyof the medallion. This version was made only during the 1940s.
The MEDAL is in GREAT condition, especially for an Original WW2era soldier’s award! The medallion shows almost no wear and has only some tinydings and contact marks, mostly on the reverse. There are no edge bumps, nicks,large scratches, or any other significant damage. The raised details of theartwork and lettering are very well-preserved and crisp. There is a veryattractive patina to the brass on the obverse, and light tarnish on the reversethat adds character, but no significant oxidation.
The medal comes on a late-1940s suspension device, a double-layermodel in steel with an integral catch of the pin. The ribbon, although morerecent than the medal itself, shows evidence of age and use, while remainingcompletely sound (Soviet war veterans often wore their medals with pride, soboth the suspensions and ribbons were frequently replaced as needed.) Theconnecting link between the medal and suspension appears to be original, andits ends are still joined with solder.
The AWARD CERTIFICATE isof a single-page format, the type that came with the earliest Soviet defensivecampaign medals of the war. It measures 14.4 x 21 cm (approx. 5 1/2“ x 8 1/4”).The top of the document has a motto “For Our Soviet Motherland!”, the Sovietnational emblem of WW2 style, and inscription “Certificate for Participation inthe Heroic Defense of Stalingrad”. Immediately below it is thehandwritten name and rank of the award recipient: Red Army Private IgorAleksandrovich Sarkin (Игорь Александрович Саркин). Near the bottom is aprinted certificate serial number (series) S #09807. The document wasfilled-out on 8 January 1944 and hand-signed by Colonel Bocharov, Chief of thePersonnel Department of the 3rd Ukrainian Front. Neat the bottom onthe left side is an ink stamp of the 30th Directorate of MilitaryConstruction, NKO (People’s Commissariat of Defense) of the USSR.
The document is in GOOD condition. It has been folded infour for storage as was customary and developed separations along the foldlines that have been repaired with clear tape applied on the verso. There aresome minimal losses of paper at the corners but overall, the document is verypresentable.
The paper shows age-appropriate toning but no finger prints,soiling, or water stains. The stamp and writing are clearly legible.
The medal was issued to one of the Soviet participants of what wasprobably the bloodiest single battle in all history and certainly the mostimportant turning point in WW2. Hitler was singularly obsessed with capturingthe \"City of Stalin\", and Stalin was equally determined not to letthat happen.
The titanic struggle went on from mid-summer of 1942 through earlyFebruary 1943 ending in a catastrophe for the German war machine – the biggestdefeat it had ever suffered up to that point. The Wehrmacht lost an entire armyin the hellish cauldron of the frozen and completely destroyed city on theVolga River, and had a Field Marshal ignominiously surrender - the first inmodern German history. The Soviet casualties, well over a million in mostestimates, were even more appalling, but unlike Germany, the Soviet Union couldafford them. With the defeat at Stalingrad, any chances of German victory inthe East were finally and irrevocably put to rest.
Given the importance of the battle, the ORIGINAL Defense ofStalingrad Medal with its WW2 issue Award Document is truly a “must have” itemin any collection of WW2 militaria!
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