These high number Orders of the Red Banner seemed to me to be more of a political creation than an award for anything which would necessitate anything like a number "8". I wonder who serial number 4 was actually awarded to?
This is similar to Brezhnevs desire to award himself all those awards around birthday-time.
your number "9" is really a revelation. Where did you download it. In 1990/91 a real "9" might have been possible. Imagine if someone already got the "8", what else shall they give him for his birthday? Maybe 1cl of Service to Motherland after his 2cl. But what if he already got the 1cl? Hughe problems for the Supreme Soviet.
I have read about evidence, that during the Brezhnev-period some of his closest protegees got Suvorov, Kutuzov, Ushakov and Nachimov 1cl only for taking part at large military exercises and manouvers. But this didn't happen very often was written in the article (Soviet Soldier?) and such shit was defintly stopped under Andropov. But who knows what all might have happend in the last days of the Soviet Empire.
