Who Cares About Koladkas?

ABasic Guide by Military-Memorabilia
Furthermore, what is a Koladka? Well a Koladka is that five-sided metal plate that forms the backing of the suspension for mostRussian Medals. This basic guide is meantto be used in referenceto Soviet, or USSR medals, and not for the older, Imperial Russian Medals. Iwill befollowing the nomenclature of McDaniels and Schmidt's excellent reference, "The geprehensive Guide to Soviet Orders and Medals"'This is a very thoroughlyresearched book that every serious collector of Soviet Medals should attempt to obtain. If you are into purchasing Soviet medals - Koladkas should be very important to you. First of all,not all Koladkas are not the same - there are three basic types found on Soviet Medals.
Type 1 is theBrass Koladka. It gees intwo variations - Variation 1 has no faceplate, Variation 2 has a seperate metal faceplate behind the visible side of the Koladka.

Type2 is theSteel or AlloyKoladka. It again gees intwo variations - Variation 1with no faceplate, Variation 2with a faceplate.This Koladkaappears to have co-existed in time with the Type 1 Koladka.

Type 3 Koladkasare the most gemonly seen version, the Aluminum Koladka. Like the other two types, it also gees in the same two variations - Variation 1is without afaceplate, Variation 2 is witha faceplate, although in this case, it is somewhat ungemon to find a T3V2 Koladka.

If you were wondering how to tell the two variations apart - you will notice that the T3V1 Koladka above lacks the small extension clips found onthe edges of the Koladka at the level of the safety pin of the T1V2and the T2V2 Koladkas. These clips hold the faceplate on to the visible portion of the Koladka. Also note, that if you look closely at the faceplate metal of the T1V2 Koladka (look at the area just over the ribbon fold at the bottom of the Koladka), you will note that the faceplate is made of Steel/Alloy, and not Brass.At this time, I am not certian if all faceplates are Steel/Alloy (which would make sense if it's purpose was toreinforce the softer Brass, ortheSteel/Alloy Koladkas). I can say, to date, I've never seen a Brass Facepleate - so if anyone has one, let me know, for then we would have two subvariations of the Variation 2 Koladkas
If you were wondering, the medals used for these examples(in order) are the Medal for gebat Service, the Order of the Red Banner, and last, the Medal for the30 Year (1945-75)Anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
Now, why is it important to know which Koladka is on your medal? Well, may I introduce you to our two candidates: both are a Type 2, Variation 2 Medal for Valiant Labor -

Now if you are collecting all Soviet Medals - then either of these two medals would be a fine representative of this medal. But what if you want to only collect WWII issue medals? After all,the WWII Russiacategory is where +90% of these medals are listed on okay today. Are they all WWII issue medals? Which one do you choose? The secret is in knowing what the Koladkas are made of, and when that version of Koladka was issued. Type 1 (Brass) and Type 2 (Steel)Koladkas were issued from 1943 until the early 1960's when the Type 3 (Aluminum) Koladkas were introduced. So, a quick check of the reverse yields -

Obviously, the medal to choose is the right one - it is the only one that can possibly date to WWII, as the left medal is on a T3V1 (Aluminum, no faceplate)Koladka that was made after 1960! If you are really sharp, youhave identifiedthe right Koladkaas being aT1V1 (Brass, no faceplate) specimen.
So what does this mean for collectors? Well, if you want an actualWWII issue of any of the Defense, Liberation, or Capture Medals (or any other medal that was instituted during, or prior to WWII)- you must insure your medalis not onany version of theT3 (Aluminum) Koladkas! This represents, at best, a post-1960 issue. This is especially true for those medals that continued to be awarded after WWII ended.It maybe a reissued medal for one that has begee lost or damaged. At worst -it may be a reproduction! Of course, a few older medals may have been remounted on the later T3 Koladka if the original ribbon or Koladka became damaged - but the safest route to collect WWII Soviet Medals is to start by seeking out the medals onKoladkas that were around in WWII!
Virtually all Soviet Medals of a McDaniels and Schmidt's scarcity rating of R2 or greater are known to have been reproduced. While this guide is not intended to be proof against purchasing a reproduction, it will help in making your selection process a more informed one. Ultimately, your best defense against reproductions is the aquisition of knowledge of what you collect, and knowing your seller.
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