amazing work

6. Day, October 18, 2021


The new collar!

Fortunately, I can work according to the original patterns ...:









The slight turn of the head is taken into account - the drapery is also accordingly ...:






The badges of rank on the collar are still missing, but for that the thing has to harden properly first.

That's why the medals continue tomorrow ...
Cheers

this is so far already impressive ! like it martin

7. Day, Oktober 2021


I have decided to do the badges of rank today after all!

Let's take a closer look first:

In the late summer of 1941 Konstantin Simonow wore two "bars" on his collar - which corresponded to the army rank of a major ...:



However, the color of the collar tabs cannot be precisely verified on the photo - so research is required first.

As a "front correspondent" Simonov was subordinate to the Political Headquarters of the Red Army, his boss was called Lev Sakharovich Mechlis, who was a close confidante of Stalin and therefore a creep of the purest, with plenty of blood on his hands!





So we have to imagine Simonov with a commissar badge on his collar.

In 1941 the Red Army was governed by the principle of "double leadership", which means that the commander of each formation was (until mid-1942) assigned an equal "political deputy" or "commissioner", without whose approval the commander could not give orders!

These "political representatives" wore collar tabs of the same color as other soldiers in this unit, i.e. red for the infantry, blue for the cavalry, green for the border troops and so on.

There was only one difference:

The commander had gold piping around the collar tabs ...





... his "political deputy" black ones ...:





In addition to the badges of rank on the collar, the "Politruk" wore "Commissar's Stars" on the sleeves on the forearm, as shown in the photo above.

Whoever fell into the hands of the aggressors of the Hitler Wehrmacht with these badges on their uniforms, like this poor pig here ...



... had to follow the criminal "commissioner's order" ...



... from General Alfred Jodl, the Chief of the Wehrmachts-Führungsstab (Wehrmacht Command Staff) ...



... immediately "be dealt with with the gun".

The above photo, found on a dead German soldier, shows the prisoner moments before he was murdered.

As a member of the Political Headquarters but front correspondent WITHOUT authority, Konstantin Simonow wears the red collar tabs of the infantry with the black piping and the two red "bars" of a "Bataljonnij Kommissar", but not the red stars on the sleeves ...:



The salutation was not "Comrade Battalion Commissar", but "Comrade Chief Political Leader" ...

From gold foil and thick 180-gram paper I built these tiny badges of rank today ...



... and attached them on the collars of my bust...:




Cheers

8. Day, Oktober 20, 2021


If I look back at my work from yesterday ...



... and compare them with my templates ...







... then it is obvious:

The badges of rank are too big - and they are also incorrectly attached!

So let's start again ...:



I think, this is much better now!


Cheers

- yup - much improved!

The black piping is already "embossed" with a dentist's tool. Can only be seen badly in the photos.
And of course it will also be painted!

I owe that to my inner "rivet counter" ...!

9. Day, Oktober 21, 2021


Our friend wears two orders - and I'm doing the first one today!



It is about the order "Red Banner of Labor" which the still young Soviet Union introduced on December 28, 1920 during the civil war.

It was the civil counterpart to the Red Banner Order, which - as the first Soviet order - saw the light of day on September 16, 1918 ...:



Both awards are very similar in terms of design.

While the Red Banner Order existed exclusively for military merit, deserving workers received the "Red Banner of Labor" - which was introduced as the second order of the USSR.

Konstantin Simonow was not a military man, but - according to the rulers' interpretation - as a writer and journalist a "worker of the forehead", as intellectual and creative activity was described. There were also "workers of the fist" who toiled in factories.

Until the beginning of 1943, both orders were awarded without a ribbon - then the ribbon was added ...:





Fortunately, I don't have to work from a photo, but the "birdie" is in my collection - albeit unfortunately only the newer version. But the early version without a ribbon is significantly more expensive!



So I made the order based on a model - red banner, Molot Serp symbol (Hamer and sickle) in the middle and the little red star below, it's all there ...:




Cheers

From the beginning of 1943 the Order of the Red Banner was awarded with the ribbon. Nothing changed about the medal itself - except that a metal eyelet was added at the top for the ribbon.


The old version without ribbon was then worn together with the new version ...:


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10. Day, Oktober 22, 2021


The second award our hero wears is this one ...:



It is the order "Sign of Honor" (Russian: орден «Знак Почёта»), a highly elaborately designed and high honor of the Soviet Union, donated on November 25, 1935 for civilian service.

Konstantin Simonow was honored on January 31, 1939 - for his reporting on the Japanese-Soviet border conflict of 1938/39, which the Soviet Union won with the decisive battle on Chalchyn Gol (May 11 to September 16, 1939).



From that time on, Zhukov and Simonov had known each other ...

BTW: Wowa Kagebeyevich Putin is one of the bearers of this order, who received it on September 12, 1996 "for services to the state and great services to the creation of the customs border with the Baltic states".

The order has been awarded with a ribbon also since 1943 ...:



And since I also have it in my collection, I was again able to work exactly according to the model ...



... whereby the many symbols piled up there almost drove me crazy - which will probably continue later with the painting ...:



So much for today.


Cheers

Tidy job! Nice photo of Zhukov and his "best buddy" Shtern at Khalkin Gol. Didn't know Simonov was there so have learned something today!

Phil

Excellent research and sculpting of the collar, insignia, and medals Martin. Your references are, as always, amazing.

Simonov is - by far! - the best Soviet author who wrote about the war!

His famous trilogy of novels is also available in English.

"The Living And the Dead" (Summer 1941 to February 1942)
"Victims and Heroes" (Stalingrad)
"The Last Summer" (Operation Bagration, Liberation of Belarus)
Absolutely worth reading!


I can also recommend "Wait for Me" (selected poems)

I don't know whether his "war diaries" (2 volumes) are also available in English.


Cheers

Thanks for this Martin - I'm onto it as soon as...

Phil

11. Day, Oktober 24, 2021


Last work on the torso!

First of all, the fat sprue on the underside has to believe in it ...:





Then a hole is drilled for the aluminum pin ...:



Then I wash the figure carefully in soapy water - to get the separating oils and all the other dirt (my fingerprints!) off:



Then the pin is glued in with two-component glue - the figure is primed and moves onto the working block ...:





Again the work of the past ten days:

Before...



Now...:



The proportions are right!

So - that was "duty" - from tomorrow there will be "freestyle" ...


Cheers

Awesome looking conversion of an already great looking bust!