Soviet Russian WW2 Medal for Defense of Moscow NICE CONDITION +ORIGNL SUSPENSION For Sale

Soviet Russian WW2 Medal for Defense of Moscow NICE CONDITION +ORIGNL SUSPENSION
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Soviet Russian WW2 Medal for Defense of Moscow NICE CONDITION +ORIGNL SUSPENSION:
$99.99

Soviet WW2 Medal for the Defense of Moscow,Variation 1.


Thisis a GUARANTEED ORIGINAL medal struck at the Soviet Mint and issued by the Sovietauthorities – not a replica or more recent reissue!


Themedallion is in brass, measures 32.1 mm in width and weighs 16.7 g notincluding the suspension and connecting link. The medal is a Variation 1characterized by a separate eyelet soldered to the main body of the medallion.This version was made only during the 1940s.


Themedal is in VERY GOOD CONDITION, especially for the early version of theaward! The obverse shows practically no wear, only some minuscule contactmarks that are practically invisible without magnification; the raised detailsof the artwork are perfect and exceptionally crisp. On the reverse, there aresome tiny dings and contact marks, all of them nearly unnoticeable to the nakedeye. The medal is completely free of bumps, edge knocks or any othersignificant condition issues. There is an attractive even patina on both sideswith just a few minor blemishes that are not too detractive.


Themedal comes on an ORIGINAL suspension device, a WW2 model in steel with aself-locking pin The ribbon is old and very likely, original to the medal. Notethat it is wrapped “in reverse” as is often the case with early issues. Theribbon shows a fair amount of wear to the edges but remains sound andattractive. In our opinion, this old ribbon adds personality to the medal, butjust in case the new owner prefers a brand-new ribbon, we’ve added a sufficientlength of it on the side (please note, our return policy applies only if themedal is returned in its original condition with the old ribbon mounted.)The connecting link between the medal and suspension appears to beoriginal to the medal, and its ends are still joined with solder. Overall, a greatexample of the Defense of Moscow medal showing a great deal of character but nodamage or serious wear.


Thismedal was awarded to one of the participants of perhaps the most criticalbattle of the initial period of the Patriotic War. By the time the Germansarrived at the doorsteps of Moscow, they had already overwhelmed massive Soviettroop formations in Belorussia, encircled and cut to pieces a large army groupat Kiev, besieged Sevastopol, and completely blockaded Leningrad. Even thoughthe Soviet government and most of the industries had evacuated from the Sovietcapital, the loss of Moscow could have been catastrophic to the Soviet wareffort: Moscow was the nexus of the entire Soviet railroad system, not tomention that its surrender would be a huge blow to morale of the alreadystaggering Soviet population.


Ithelped of course that the German Wehrmacht had been bled white in the previousbattles and that Moscow’s air defenses were next to none in the world.Moreover, the Soviets had prepared formidable armored reserves, to a largeextent from the troops taken from the far eastern border (after it had beendetermined that Japan was not planning to attack the Soviet Union in 1941).Additionally, the unusually cold winter of 1941-42 - even by Russian standards- wreaked havoc on German equipment.


TheSoviet counteroffensive at Moscow in early December 1941 - January 42 failed todestroy the Army Group Center, but it inflicted serious losses on the Germansand pushed the front line away from the city. Even more importantly, this wasthe first major German reversal on the ground in WW2 and thus a tremendousmorale booster for the entire anti-Nazi coalition.


TheMedal for the Defense of Moscow Variation 1 is really a “must have” item in anyWW2 medal collection. Don’t miss out on this nice ORIGINAL example!

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