Show me your DDR

HerrScheisse · 09-04-2012 8:56pm

Unfortunately I do not. I had bought the Volkspolizei Award and then came across this item later so purchased it to piece together with the previous item. I will try find out about it and post back.

Little Alex wrote: »

I agree. Great photos!

Do you know anything about this badge? I don't think it's a Bester (Bestenabzeichen) badge, but maybe it is. It doesn't appear in my awards reference book (printed 1979).

I must put some photos up myself at some stage!

HerrScheisse · 09-04-2012 8:58pm

An amateur border guard - a snitch with a badge

MedalFuhrer wrote: »

I wonder did people actually wear these in public? And how many were disposed off after the wall came down?

HerrScheisse · 09-04-2012 9:01pm

Why thank you!

It was indeed a very productive trip, but we should have taken more items. Some of the objects were ridiculous prices and now we are kicking ourselves. It feels like going on a diet while in a sweet shop

Morlar wrote: »

Those are excellent & sounds like a productive trip ! Very well photographed too

HerrScheisse · 09-04-2012 9:06pm

HerrScheisse · 09-04-2012 9:08pm

This was more pricey than most of the other items posted so far. I understand it is a hochschule or Academy award but the exact name escapes me at this moment. Any ideas?

MedalFuhrer · 12-04-2012 11:35pm

I like that one. Especially since he is sporting a mean looking beard! Beard power!

MedalFuhrer · 12-04-2012 11:42pm

I bought this as a set:

Banner der Arbeit 3rd Class (The Banner of Labor) in original box,
Original award documents
And the person's ribbon bar.

It was given for "outstanding achievements of many years which stabilized and strengthened the country, and in particular for high results of working in the national economy" and came in three classes.

MedalFuhrer · 12-04-2012 11:48pm

Order of Merit for Service to the People and Fatherland, 3rd Class

Little Alex · 13-04-2012 12:06am

HerrScheisse wrote: »

This was more pricey than most of the other items posted so far. I understand it is a hochschule or Academy award but the exact name escapes me at this moment. Any ideas?

Very nice, HerrScheisse!

That's Friedrich Engels. One of the very biggest of spiritual names in the DDR.

Your Absolventenabzeichen der Militärakademie Friedrich Engels is from 1987 onwards. Check here for more info on graduation badges.

HerrScheisse · 21-04-2012 7:37pm

Vielen dank Genosse!

I am in touch with somebody now and should have the Potsdam Academy award very shortly, also in discussion for some MfS medals - I'll post if the deal goes through! Appreciate the pointer on that last item

MedalFuhrer · 26-04-2012 11:06pm

Little Alex wrote: »

Anything interesting in the rolled-up newspaper?

So Little Alex you question made me curious. So I took the newspaper out of the cap in order to have a look. It is dry and verging on brittle from age. My German is not good so I can't read it, but I have scanned the page in on both side:

Neues Deutschland
16/17th of February 1980

Page 11 (well half of it!)

Page 12

Little Alex · 02-05-2012 11:53am

The first page has an article about illiteracy in Nicaragua, actively being stamped out by the socialist Sandanista regime. The second article on that page is about a Japanese theme park which features an ice sculpture of Mischka, the mascot of the 1980 Moscow Olympics.

The second page has articles covering an advanced production method for radiotherapy medicine in the DDR, research into an automatic translation machine which recognises syllables and allowable letter combinations in each language, therefore accurately translating, again in the DDR. USSR research into volcanoes being the source of life on earth, a joint USSR-US oceanographic research project, analysis of oyster colonisation of anchor chains with the view of using the findings to develop methods of shellfish farming, again in Russia make up the other articles.

There are also the articles without socialist influence: a journal entry from an American medical publication about colon cancer detection and a potential breakthrough in cancer treatment from Switzerland.

The joint USSR-US adventure is very strange, given that this was at the time when the Americans had announced their boycott of the Moscow Olympics.

HerrScheisse · 02-05-2012 7:58pm

The DDR certainly liked their science - you would not get so much highly detailed scientific reporting in a Western daily unless it were a specialist magazine on such subjects. At it is good that this newpaper was stuck in the hat as it gives a clue to the vintage of our uniforms.

Just beside the Ostbahnhof in Berlin, you can see the offices of "Neues Deutschland".

HerrScheisse · 02-05-2012 8:01pm

I just received some new DDR and these Zivilverteidigung medals were thrown in as an extra. The bronze was awarded for ten years service whilst the silver was for twenty years service. You got gold for thirty years.
Note the extra ribbon for the silver medal is not the correct one (should have white stripe).

I'll post the rest up the coming days as I do not like to photo them at night under artificial light (as I did with these two).

Little Alex · 03-05-2012 1:39am

HerrScheisse, as far as I know these are worn by civilian reservists of the Zivilverteidigung (ZV). I guess they were a kind of analogue to the Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse (KdA), but arguably manned by less fervent types of people: the ZV existed to help people in case of nuclear war and so forth and the KdA existed to suppress uprisings. They both wore the same fatigues, but the ZV were NVA-stamped and the KdA were MdI-stamped.

There was also a full-time Zivilverteidigung arm of the NVA. They had their own Waffenfarbe - purple - and their own medals. In the same way as the Grenztruppen, their medals were identical to those of the NVA, but stamped Zivilverteidiguing instead of Nationale Volksarmee (I think these are quite rare). They also had their own cuffband: I posted a photo of my ZV tunic some time back.

I think I have a full KdA outfit with all the trimmings somewhere. I'll see if I can fish it out.

My recent acquisitions include a genuine paratrooper officer's orange beret and an air force gala jacket, which should arrive any day.

I'll put up a few photos soon!

HerrScheisse · 03-05-2012 9:47pm

Thanks for the extra information my good man! I will be interested to see your new items.

And now for something a little different, the insignia of the DDR Forestry Service.

HerrScheisse · 06-05-2012 10:56am

The Gesellschaft für Sport und Technik (GST) was a military organisation whose melmbers occupied themselves with activities such as motors, aircraft and radio installations. They also held shooting events to militarise the youth.

Below three GST shooting pins, in bronze, silver and gold.

HerrScheisse · 07-05-2012 7:43pm

Little Alex · 08-05-2012 12:56am

This is my beret. It seems to tick all the boxes as regards being an original. It's an officer dress version from 1989:

My Kampfgruppen uniform -

Left sleeve with the Kampfgruppen symbol: an arm holding a rifle with a red flag attached

Medals for 5, 10, 15 and 20 years service

Ribbon bar, pre mid-1970s

Tie for parade wear

Shooting medals in bronze, silver and gold

Close-up of the shooting medals:

Zivilverteidigung items...

The "Bester" badge... I believe this is worn by NVA-Zivilverteidigung and reservists, but I'm not absolutely sure.

Beside that are the Verdienstmedaillen in bronze and silver. These are "second level" medals, but are for some reason far more common than the Treue Dienste medals, which doesn't really make sense.

As I thought, HerrScheisse, your ZV Treue Pflichterfüllung medals are for civilian reservists.

The little ribbon bar doesn't seem to fulfill the regulations, so I'm not sure what to make of it... it could be a detached top row...

HerrScheisse · 11-05-2012 10:20pm

Here is the white variant of the Stasi Hochschule badge.

HerrScheisse · 11-05-2012 10:34pm

Here are six bronze medals that were awarded as a set to members of the Wachregiment FD.

The rear of each medal is the same with the Chekist motto: A Chekist has a cool head, a warm heart and clean hands (conscience).

FD Wachregiment. Perhaps someone can identify the building in this medal for me, and its location in Berlin?

Dynamo is the sport club of the MfS. The text states: Prepared to defend the homeland.

20 Years Ministry of State Security.

Cross organisation of the Free German Youth of the MfS.

Cross party organisation of the MfS.

Brother in class. Brother in arms. Undefeatable.

HerrScheisse · 11-05-2012 10:37pm

Alex do you have any more info on these Bester badges? What was the purpose and shy were they awarded?

HerrScheisse · 15-05-2012 6:19pm

It's Karl Marx in a holographic style stickpin!

Turn it one direction - where are you gone Karl?

Turn it back - oh there you are :pac:

MedalFuhrer · 17-05-2012 1:06pm

l like that pin. It's classy looking compared to most of the other DDR brightly coloured stuff.

HerrScheisse · 06-06-2012 12:05am

In the same colour as the 35th anniversary badge, and a variant of the blue and red 40th badges I posted earlier. To think they had all these badges ready and just missed it by a whisker.

HerrScheisse · 06-06-2012 10:32pm

I managed to get a whole bunch of Stasi items recently. Here is an award plaque in perfect condition and boxed:

HerrScheisse · 06-06-2012 10:33pm

Here is an award to the Stasi from the district offices of Karl-Marx-Stadt with the arms of the Stasi shield and sword.

It is made of porcelain and the rear shows the SED logo and the text "presented by the party leadership".

HerrScheisse · 07-06-2012 9:16pm

The Stasi had their own sports organisation called SV Dynamo (SV = Sportvereinigung) that started in 1953 and continued on until 1989 achieving much success and winning multiple Olympic medals.

Below is the Ehrennadel in bronze awarded in 1979.

Show me your DDR

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